Merciless
by Raven-igma
Summary: "But believe me, the death I'll grant you will not be a quick one. Oh no, by the time I'm done with you you're going to wish you were dead." warning: torture, abuse, violence
1. Chapter 1 Captured

**Edit: Hi, yeah okay warning here that this fanfic is incredibly dark and bloody (and downright bad in my opinion since it was started over a year ago and finished last year and I've since improved, or at least I hope so.) I was planning on taking this down but a lot of people seem to like it and I spent way too much time writing it so whatever it stays up.**

**Anyways, Link crash lands at Eldin, gets knocked out, whoops Ghirahim finds him. A lot of graphically described torture/interrogation/gore and random/disorganized plot stuff ensues. Also character death in chapter 9 (? I think.) **

**If you still feel like reading this bs then by all means, go right ahead. If you're squicked by gore/torture and the like then I suggest hitting the back button k thank.**

* * *

><p>Consciousness was horrible.<p>

Between the dreadful heat of the volcano, pounding headache and utter confusion of where he was, Link would've preferred to stay out cold. But he knew couldn't do that… he had a mission to complete, and an urgent one at that. Zelda was counting on him, _everyone_ was counting on him.

He pushed his eyes open slowly and blinked a few times, where exactly was he? He remembered descending into the Eldin province over the volcano, the moment he'd passed the cloud barrier he'd known something was wrong. The place felt ominous and dark, shortly afterwards a sudden angry wind had blown him off course… then nothing. Could he have smashed into the side of a cliff? That would explain the headache…

The ground being at a ninety degree angle only told him he was laying on his side in what appeared to be in a small room. A few pots and the greyish singed grass that seemed to love growing in this environment were the only things in his field of vision. There was something else… or rather, there lack of. He felt empty almost; it was as if something vital had been taken away. He tried to push himself up off the dirt to further assess the problem but came to the unpleasant realization that he couldn't move his hands; they were bound behind him.

"Ugh…" With some effort he managed to roll onto his back and look around. The only way in an out of the room was an entryway covered with bars. He could see the outside; the dark cloud covered sky was visible along with a bokoblin with its back turned towards him, seemingly guarding the cell.

It was clear then; he'd been captured. Predictably, he felt lighter; all of his weapons and items were gone. He couldn't feel Fi nearby, her presence had completely vanished and he was now alone. He closed his eyes briefly; it would do no good to panic in this situation. Opening his eyes he pulled himself into a sitting position, absentmindedly testing the bonds.

Now, bokoblins were pretty stupid creatures, but they knew their stuff when it came to knots, the rope didn't budge one bit.

Link growled softly, he didn't have time for this! He had to find the dragon of the Eldin province and learn its' part of the Song of the Hero, only then, was he closer to finding the Triforce and awakening Zelda. This was a major setback in plans, and by the looks of it, it didn't seem like he would be getting to the Eldin dragon anytime soon.

He kicked a pot to the side in frustration. It rolled and hit the wall, shattering with a satisfying _crash_. The bokoblin turned its head to glare at him, just talking notice he was awake. "What are you looking at?" Link hissed, not knowing nor caring if it understood him. The bokoblins seemed to have their own language, communicating with indistinct snarls or yells. Never the less this one let out a shriek and lunged at the bars of the small hut where Link was imprisoned, it grabbed hold of the bars, shaking them and yelling at the young Hero.

Link _had_ killed a lot of their kind before, maybe this one was so worked up about its fallen brethren. It seemed perfectly content to want to rip him to pieces.

But in a mere instant the bokoblins' expression went from rage to fear, its eyes widening before it suddenly dropped to the ground. A second later it disappeared in dark lavender smoke. Link stared at it, confused, "What the-"

"Such annoying creatures…"

Link froze, his eyes widening. If there was _any _voice in the world that he never wanted to hear again it was_ that_ one. A familiar figure stepped into view, a grin played on the person's lips at seeing the surprise on the young hero's face. "I suppose they aren't entirely useless though, if they managed to capture _you_ of all people_._"

The person sighed and leaned on the bars of the cell, crossing his arms, "It's rather pathetic if you ask me. The girl is the one I'm aiming to capture, and if I'm not mistaken, you're looking for her as well." He glanced at Link over his shoulder, "Are you not?"

Link remained silent, but his eyes were fixed on Ghirahim with an almost livid glare, anger shooting through him at the demon lords' words.

Ghirahim chuckled, "It doesn't matter anyways. This all works out in my favour." He tossed his snowy hair out of his face, "You see… I still am not any closer to finding the whereabouts of the spirit maiden since the last time we met, sad as that is to admit,_ but _I think you can help me out."

"And why would I do that?" Link bit out, clenching his fists.

Ghirahim's smile widened, he turned to Link fully with an almost abashed look on his face, "Oh! I'm sorry. I must have given you the wrong impression Link, you have something I want. No I am not asking for it, I'm_ demanding_ it this time."

"And what, _goddess knows_, would that be?" the young hero growled.

The demon lords' smile vanished, and a few seconds later he did too in a cloud of diamond shapes. He reappeared again on the_ inside_ of the cell, his eyes fixed on Link, filled with malice and contempt for the teen. "Information." He stated simply.

Unconsciously, Link shrank away from Ghirahim, being trapped in a relatively small space with the person he probably despised the most in the world right now did _not_ sit well with him. Especially when said person was clearly at the advantage. This wouldn't be like their other encounters. Link couldn't fight; all of his weapons had been taken away, and without Fi's help he was pretty much screwed. He couldn't run; the only exit in the cell was blocked by bars and beyond that, who knew, Ghirahim could have a whole army of bokoblins lying in wait. Worst of all he couldn't even defend himself with his hands tied, he was truly cornered.

His jaw clenched and unclenched, he uselessly tried to struggle against the rope.

Ghirahim watched with dark amusement, he took a step towards Link, smirking when the boy pushed himself backwards in a futile attempt to get away from him. "The last time we fought I asked you to tell me the whereabouts of the second Gate of Time." the demon lord said, "A simple request, was it not? Yet you refused." He continued to advance. Link narrowed his eyes in the best warning glare he could muster up, Ghirahim stopped a few feet away from him. Sighing, he brushed his hair back over his ear, "You know, your defiance was cute at first, boy, but now it really just grates my nerves. I fear I am growing impatient with you, so I'll make this easy, tell me the location of the Gate of Time and I _might _consider sparing you whole lot of torment."

The demon lord would most likely kill him if he talked or didn't talk, it didn't matter either way. Link's glare never wavered. If anything, Ghirahim's words only gave him more reason to rebel. "You're_ not_ going to find Zelda." He spat acidly, "I would rather die than let you get to her!"

Ghirahim expected this, his lip curled, "That can be arranged."

Then a hand closed around the young hero's throat and in the blink of an eye, he found himself slammed against the back wall, air completely knocked out of his lungs. Ghirahim tightened his grip, making sure that Link getting his breath back was all the more difficult for him.

"_I wasn't planning on letting you live anyways."_ The demon lord hissed venomously, his face now mere inches from Link's. "No, I made that mistake once, _twice_ even. I never expected a brat like you to cause me so much _trouble_." The younger struggled in vain, it was useless. He couldn't breathe. He felt himself growing weaker by the moment.

Ghirahim kept on talking, "Rest assured it won't happen again, I learned my lesson from letting you run free." He then noticed that Link's eyes were closing, he was blacking out from the lack of oxygen. Without a word, he let the teen drop to the floor, coughing and gasping for air, and stepped away.

"This is your last chance, Link. I'll ask you just once more, where is the second Gate of Time?" He said, his voice deadly calm.

A few moments passed. Link was breathing heavily, he leaned against the stone wall, eyes closed. He opened them, bright blue eyes shooting daggers at the demon lord across from him. Yet he refused to say anything, and didn't look like he was going to anytime soon.

Ghirahim regarded him for a moment with one hand on his hip, he then shook his head and began to laugh slowly.

"Mistake."

A sickening _crunch_ filled Link's ears, he was jolted from his initial anger to shock in the blink of an eye. It took him a moment to realize what had happened; Ghirahim's foot had come down,_ hard,_ on Link's right ankle, the bone had snapped effortlessly.

And then the pain set in, Link let out a screech as the agony shot through him.

The sound was incredible, to Ghirahim it was like music. He grinned devilishly, _oh the sky child did not know what he'd got himself into, and this was only the beginning. _"You're going to regret the day you _ever_ crossed me." He said, eyes flashing with malicious intent, watching the boy slowly compose himself.

Link bit down on his tongue to keep from making any more of the noise the sadistic bastard seemed to enjoy so much. He took a slow shuddering breath and let it out. It hurt… a lot, but he could handle it. He closed his eyes, teeth gnashing together in frustration and anxiety. How exactly_ could _he get out of this?

"I'm sure I can imagine what's running through your head right now."

The demon lord's voice was uncomfortably close.

He opened his eyes to see Ghirahim's own steel grey ones staring back at him. If Link had the space to jump back in surprise he would have. Ghirahim was kneeling in front of him, one hand was out to the side, middle finger and thumb pressed together in a snapping position. "You're looking for a way out, analyzing every possible angle, like a cornered rat. But, dear boy, _there is no way out." _He snapped his fingers and his black sabre materialised out of thin air, Link's eyes darted to it warily. "That wretch, Impa won't come to your rescue, that pathetic spirit of your sword… oh, what was her name?" He pondered for a moment, "Fi. That was what you called her. She definitely will not help you… it's almost as pitiful as it is ironic."

He traced Link's jaw line with a single finger as he said, "But believe me, the death I'll grant you will _not _be a quick one. _Oh no,_ by the time I`m done with you you're going to _wish_ you were dead."


	2. Chapter 2 Round One

What happened next was a blur, numbness washed over the young hero. A flash of steel was all he saw and that was it.

At first he didn't feel anything. Then it hit him, breaking through the haze. He was jolted from his initial anger to shock in the blink of an eye, his head snapping back as a strangled cry escaped his lips. Pain more intense than the heat of the volcano seized him. He twisted and turned, anything to stop the cruel agony.

Then, as quickly as it had begun, it just stopped. Whatever had taken over him released its hold, he could think and he could breathe again.

But the actual pain never left and when he cast his gaze downwards, he realized why. Ghirahim had stabbed down, driving the coal black sabre straight into Link's knee of the same leg as his previous injury, and twisted. It was all there, the blood, the wound, and the blade; cold unrelenting steel buried in flesh and bone. But there was something else… a faint purple aura lingered around the sword, crackling with the dark energy he must've felt not a minute ago.

Link resisted the urge to scream again, _it was unbearable! _Nowhere near as unbearable as it had been a few moments ago but he was definitely not in a pleasant state now.

Ghirahim was _laughing._

Link had never wanted to hurt someone so badly in his life, not even Groose. The bastard was _actually laughing;_ as in he found this _hilarious. _Link saw red for a split second, all pain forgotten for the moment and replaced by anger. He wanted to make the demon lord feel even a _fraction _of the agony he was feeling at the moment. Without thinking, he lunged forwards only to regret it. With the sword still impaled in his leg, the only thing he managed to do was tear open the injury more. He gasped as he pulled himself back, gritting his teeth.

Ghirahim only laughed harder.

"Now that really was adorable. What were you trying to do?" He tilted his head, feigning a sweet smile, "Hurt me?"

The purple aura flared and the second wave hit, lasting longer this time. Link was unable to suppress a wordless scream as the dark current surged through him.

All too soon, the boys screaming died down to ragged gasps and pants, much to the demon lords' disappointment. 'No matter,' he thought, withdrawing the blade with deliberate slowness, a cold-blooded smirk tugged at his lips as he watched the boy writhe in anguish- _oh, the sight was almost heartbreaking!_

_'Hahaha! Yeah right.'_ Ghirahim thought with maniacal glee. He brought his black sabre close to his face, examining it before his eyes were drawn back to Link's heavily mutilated leg. A fairy would be required to heal _that_ (not that the child was _getting_ one) it looked way beyond repair on its own. If the broken bones and torn muscles and ligaments weren't proof of that, then the blood was. So much blood…the metallic scent of it was driving him up the walls.

To Link's horror, Ghirahim's tongue flicked out and tasted the crimson liquid that stained his blade, if only for the reaction it got from the boy. Link's eyes widened considerably and Ghirahim chuckled at the expression on his face. The hand that wasn't holding the sword reached up and snatched a good amount of the boys' hair, forcing his head back. Ghirahim leaned in close, his break tickling the young hero's ear, "That's a good look on you, sky child, keep it that way."

Then he disappeared in a small cloud of multi-coloured diamonds. Unfortunately he wasn't really gone; Link could still feel his presence close by. The demon lord was only toying with him.

He exhaled slowly, releasing a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding. He glanced around with unease, shifting slightly in a vain attempt to loosen the ropes a bit. Unintentionally he moved his severely injured leg and agony shot through him, he sucked in air through his teeth and clenched his eyes shut, trying to will it away.

It wasn't doing much good.

Still, he refused to show weakness and masked his pain with a fierce glare. He knew Ghirahim was here, so why didn't he just show himself already?

Then movement to the right caught his eye. There he was, sitting on a crate in perhaps the most arrogantly casual pose one could manage in this situation. With one leg crossed over the other, he leaned forwards, resting his chin on his hand and his elbow on his knee. He appeared to be almost bored.

"I could end this right now." He stated, not even looking at Link, "You truly are helpless, it would be so easy…The only thing keeping you alive is what you possibly know on the whereabouts of the Goddess… feh." He blew his bangs out of his face, of course they just fell back immediately after. He sighed melodramatically, "But killing you now would be no fun of course… wouldn't you agree?" It was a rhetorical question, but he at least expected some sort of response from the sky child. Link only remained silently glowering at Ghirahim.

"You can talk, can't you? Or are you just at a loss for heroics at the moment?" He cast Link a scathing glance, who still refused to say anything. He was doing that on purpose wasn't he?

"Speak." And to Ghirahim's surprise, he did.

"If you're going to kill me anyway, then there's no need to." Link growled, Ghirahim blinked before leaning back on his hands with an expression of something caught between amusement and annoyance.

"Oh, you misunderstand me." He pushed off the crate, pacing back and forth slowly in front of Link, "It's true I am going to eventually kill you, but I'll keep you alive as long as it takes to get the information I need, if _only just._ So you see, it's better you tell me now and spare yourself the suffering while I'm in a good mood…" He pretended to examine the black sabre still in his hand and still coated with hero's blood.

"If this is you in your good mood I'd hate to see you when you're pissed…" Link mumbled dryly.

The demon lord ignored him, "…Rather than later, when I'm in a bad mood and you're barely breathing." He flicked his blade to the side, shaking off the excess gore, "Even then I might just let you live a little longer, be it a few minutes or a few seconds, to prolong your torture." He gave a cruel grin, "But it really is up to you."

"I'm not telling you anything about the Gate, _so forget it."_ It wasn't easy to miss the obvious strain in the boy's voice. Ghirahim rolled his eyes inwardly, trying to hide pain from him was foolish and pointless on its own, but it was the child's never faltering rebellious spirit that infuriated him the most. Threaten him, smack him around a bit… it didn't matter apparently, his promises of torture had no effect. Absentmindedly he summoned a dagger and twirled it above his fingertips.

He intended to break the sky child mentally, emotionally and physically (oh, especially physically), but the question was: where to start?

_'Well if I want to get anywhere, that bloody heroic resolve definitely has to go...'_ Ghirahim thought.

With a flick of the wrist, he sent the dagger flying at Link's head, startling the hero. It stuck to the wall beside his ear. A long but shallow gash appeared on his cheek below his eye.

"It must be frustrating, Ghirahim was walking forwards again, Link looked up in alarm as he neared, "not being able to do anything I mean." The demon lord reached forwards and Link cringed away, shutting his eyes and expecting pain. It never came. A few moments later he opened his eyes to see Ghirahim on the other side of the room again, retrieved dagger in hand and grinning at Link's reaction.

"I can do anything I want with you, and you'd be powerless to stop it." Excitement flooded through him at his own words. He threw the dagger again, this time aiming for Link's shoulder. The boy gave a sharp grunt as it stuck deep into his bicep. With a snap of the fingers, Ghirahim channeled more of his dark magic into the small weapon, causing it to emit a lavender glow. Link knew at once what was about to come, bracing himself for the dreadful current of white hot energy...

Another scream ripped from his lungs (much to Ghirahim's delight) this time it felt like every cell in his body was being ripped apart _bit by bit._ Whatever spell Ghirahim was using, it seemed to be growing stronger every time. He wanted so desperately to escape the pain, he thrashed around but only succeeded in agitating his injuries further...

Finally, it was over. He was left breathing hard, head lolling on his shoulders. He felt so weak, weak and angry... and he was suddenly aware of a certain monster invading his personal space yet again.

"So please," Ghirahim said, face inches from Link's own, "do tell me how that makes you feel." Blood beaded at the small line on the boy's face, a few drops spilling down his cheek, Ghirahim licked his lips at the appealing sight of red life fluid. Link shuddered in disgust and turned his head away, but threw the sadistic demon lord a stone-cold glare from the corner of his eye.

"What, the fact that I can't do anything or whatever you just shot me with?" He tried to reply as sardonically as he could, but his voice sounded so feeble and came out as not much more than a whisper, it was sickening even to him.

Ghirahim tilted his head slightly, narrowing his eyes as a small smile tugged at the edges of his mouth. "Both." He reached up to grasp the dagger still embedded in the young hero's shoulder and put the slightest amount of pressure on it, eliciting a wince from the sky child. Link wanted to get away from him so badly, if only he... wait! It took all of his self-control not to cheer as he felt one side of the rope binding his hands finally loosen a bit, allowing him to slip out his hands easily but without Ghirahim noticing.

"...Kind of like this."

Ghirahim had a split second to wonder what he meant before a fist smashed into his face,_ his_ face! Link had thrown the punch with as much force as he could muster, which had surprisingly been a lot, fueled by the sheer amount rage he felt for this man. And it got its point across. Ghirahim caught his fist before he could throw another one, head angled away from the boy due to the strength of the first punch. He could_ not_ believe he'd just been caught off guard like that, especially by someone in such a defenceless position.

_"You..."_ He turned his head back slowly to glare at the sky child, hissing in a low, menacing tone, "You will regret that."

He seized a fistful of green tunic, simultaneously pulling out the previously summoned dagger much to the hero's blatant discomfort, making a mental note to murder the bokoblin responsible for tying the ropes later. He easily hefted the boy to his feet, ignoring his cry of pain he slammed the child against the wall for the second time that day, with one forearm braced against his collar bone. Ghirahim was absolutely livid with anger now, what right did this mere_ insect _possess to make him feel such fury? He was Ghirahim, Demon Lord, and this was a child! A child that had the nerve to defy him not once, not twice, but _multiple times._ Oh how he wanted to make him _hurt._

"Why won't you _give up?_ Can't you see it's over?" With you here it's only a matter of time before I find Hylia and use her to revive my master."

Link had his teeth bared in a snarl, "It's not over," he said much more confidently then he felt, "and it won't _be_ over until after I destroy Demise and kill you!" There it was again, that goddamn resolve of his!

Ghirahim scoffed and raised his free hand, snapping his fingers, "Keep thinking that, sky child, but it won't get you very far."

Twin diamond chains snaked down from nowhere and wrapped around the Link's wrists, who jolted with a yell and tried to break free. It was no good, the chains held him fast to the wall. Ghirahim smirked and lowered his hand to his side, pointing the black sabre he was still holding towards the ground, "Adorable little stunt that was before. A punch to the face. REALLY cute." He said, voice dripping with sarcasm, "I'll admit though, it was a good effort, but futile all the same." He looked Link up and down. The boy was trying not to put weight on his severely injured leg. He was covered in blood, sweat and dirt, a grimace on his face as he desperately attempted to push back the immense pain he must be feeling. It was quite the impressive picture actually… "At least this way there'll be no more significant resistance from you."

With his other hand he grabbed the boy's chin, forcing Link to look at him, "See?"

Anger, hatred, resentment… that was what he saw in the young hero's blue eyes, but there was something else; the slightest flicker of panic, of actual fear from the sky child since their first meeting in the Skyview Temple. He'd forgotten how utterly _fitting_ the emotion looked on him. The demon lord's smirk deepened.

"Get… the _hell_ away from me," Link tried to jerk his head away, resuming his struggles, he had meant to sound intimidating but his tone took on an edge of anxiety, ruining the illusion that he wasn't scared of Ghirahim's advances at all._ 'Good, he has every right to be afraid of me.'_ Ghirahim thought.

"No, I don't think I will…" his hand trailed down, leaving the hero's face and finding the deep wound in his shoulder left by the dagger previously. He dug his fingers into it, relishing the way Link squirmed and the little gasps he made… He didn't know how torturing the boy came to be so much fun, but honestly, he didn't care.

"Since we began I haven't heard you beg once for me to stop," Ghirahim murmured, withdrawing his bloody fingers from the wound much to Link's relief. The sky child hung his head, breathing heavily. "I suppose I should admire your spirit. Not that it will last much longer."

"Really…" Link huffed, glaring up through his dirty-blonde bangs, "And why's that?"

Impressed, but annoyed that he still had the nerve to talk back, Ghirahim positioned the sharp edge of the black sabre on the hero's left shoulder, "I want you to plead for mercy, and when I want something, I don't stop until I get it." He inclined his head slightly, "That should be fairly obvious by now."

With that, he slashed diagonally across Link's torso, slicing clean through his tunic and through skin as well. The blood that welled up from the deep gash quickly stained the pale green material a dark red. A horrible searing pain spread throughout his body and he screamed, _oh Goddess, his screams. _The demon lord could listen to them all day.

And he realized he had the time to do so as well. A dark grin crossed his face. The child wasn't going anywhere, and the only thing left to do was figure out where the other little sky brat was hiding out… through interrogation. Link could put on his best tough guy act all he wanted, but sooner or later he would cave, reach his limits. And Ghirahim was perfectly fine with that. The time between then and now was going to be _oh so enjoyable_ for the silver haired demon.

He raised the sword to his lips and licked it clean of the hero's blood, revelling in the coppery taste, and then prepared to strike again.

"Link…" he purred, getting right up to teen's face which was now contorted in immense pain, his eyes were shut tight and he didn't dare open them. He didn't want to see Ghirahim at the moment… or ever again for that matter. "You can tell me where _she_ is anytime, anytime at all…" Ghirahim continued, gently running the tip of the blade along Link's left forearm and coming to a stop at his palm.

"N…no." The child's voice still held defiance and rebellion, but it was _weaker_ this time aroundand that was a start.

"_In truth," _Link's eye's snapped open at the sudden bloodlust that had crept into the elder's tone, _"I actually prefer it this way. Where's the fun in it if breaking you is no challenge at all?" _

The cold fingers of dread clawed their way up the young hero's spine. Link had only heard that tone come from him once before, it was right before they had fought in the Fire Link thought he was being ruthless back then… Ghirahim pulled back his arm with a growing smirk of satisfaction, he was finally getting to him, _he had to be._

Link clenched his eyes shut, he knew he had to remain strong for Zelda, he would find a way to get out of this, he knew he would…

Not hesitating another moment, Ghirahim swiftly plunged the dark blade into the hero's hand.

* * *

><p>It could've been days that went by, it sure <em>felt <em>like days to Link. He'd completely lost the feeling in both arms, and was barely conscious, covered in harsh lacerations from head to toe. He briefly wondered how much blood a person could lose without blacking out. Apparently Ghirahim knew and was purposely keeping him from doing so.

In reality it had only been a few hours, though to Ghirahim it seemed like minutes. He wanted to play with him a bit longer… but it looked like any more damage done to the child would surely kill him, and he couldn't have _that…_ not so soon anyways. He'd continue this later…

He snapped his fingers and the chains dissipated into diamond shapes, Link crumpled to the ground like a ragdoll. A small pool of blood began to gather under him.

"Oh dear… " Ghirahim said out loud, stifling the urge to laugh, "…perhaps I went a little too far."

Link didn't even hear him, in a few seconds he was out like a light, falling into blissful unconsciousness.

The demon lord knelt down, seeing to more use for his sword at the moment he made that disappear as well. He pressed to fingers to the young hero's neck. Alive… but not for long if he remained like this, the sky child was hanging by a thread. It looked like Ghirahim would have to go back on his earlier word, much to his chagrin. He sighed and snapped, a small glowing pink sprite appeared at his fingertips. He sent the fairy flying towards Link with an unceremonious flick. She took notice of the boy and her wings drooped in sadness at seeing his current state, she got to work quickly. Ghirahim watched with an almost bored look as she whisked back and forth, spreading her healing magic over the fallen hero.

"That's enough," he said after a while. A split second later, the fairy hit the wall, skewered by a hastily summoned dagger. He didn't want Link _completely _out of pain when he woke up.

But he still couldn't believe it, no begging, not one single plea from the child, no cries of 'please Ghirahim, stop!' How disappointing that was… In some way though, it intrigued him, he suspected a lesser human would have broken already but _oh no,_ this one was _special._ The demon lord rolled his eyes; the child was still _nothing_ compared to him though. Stubborn as he was, he couldn't keep this up forever.

"Rest now, sky child… this was only round one." He rose to his feet, turning to leave, but not before he threw one last glance over his shoulder.

"Everything has a breaking point." He muttered, before disappearing.


	3. Chapter 3 Your Choice

Link groaned as he pushed himself up, slowly and steadily, with one hand braced against the greyish stone wall. The other hung limply at his side. Mere minutes ago he had awoken in the same cell, no surprise there.

And he'd thought he'd felt horrible _before._

Searing pain had greeted him instead of a raging headache this time around. He found that he much preferred the headache. He brought his hand up to his face, wincing with every movement. Anger soon began welling up inside him.

"_I'm going to kill him." _He hated how hoarse his voice sounded. How pathetic he must look right now! Covered in blood, clothes torn where the demon's blade had struck… repeatedly. His arms had probably gotten the worst of it all, it was a miracle he could still use them… actually it was a miracle he could even_ stand_ after all of that.

Wait, that didn't make any sense. He was _standing._

Link's eyes were drawn to his thought-to-be-wounded leg. Healed. No sign of any broken bones or twisted joints, though a dull pain still lingered, reminding him that he even had had the injuries in the first place. After further inspection he realized it went like that for the worst of his wounds, the rest were either half-healed or just not healed at all. Not that he was complaining, but how? _Why?_

He found the answer pinned to the wall, her wings bent unnaturally, one of Ghirahim's kunai-like daggers sticking out of her little body - a fairy.

But why would – oh, right. The psycho mentioned something about 'keeping him alive until he got the information he needed'.

'_That's just too bad for him because he isn't coming anywhere_ near_ Zelda. Not if I can help it.' _Link thought with renewed determination. Even after hours of the brutal stabbing he still hadn't broken or even cracked, and that was the important thing.

He reached down to pry the dagger from the wall and gently let the sprite's corpse fall into his hand. The normally bright pink glow had completely vanished and moments later, she did as well. The sprite's tiny body faded from existence. He closed his eyes briefly. He should be thankful for the fairy healing him but it had only served a darker purpose.

With fairy magic at his disposal, Ghirahim could bring him back from an inch from death at any time… only to torture him more.

What a lovely thought that was.

'_Good thing I don't plan on hanging around that long…' _Link thought; he wasn't particularly interested in getting stabbed nearly to death again nor did he have any desire to experience whatever else the demon had in mind. He opened his eyes and cast his gaze to the entrance of the cell, covered with bars…

Or rather, there lack of.

He was momentarily thrown off by this unexpected discovery. No… Ghirahim couldn't possibly be _that_ stupid, could he?

His eyes narrowed in suspicion, hand leaving the wall as he made his way over to the entrance, a slight limp in his step. Ghirahim leaving the cell door accidentally open seemed like a pretty far-fetched notion in itself. A bokoblin probably could've done it, that seemed far more believable but highly improbable as there were none in sight.

He clutched his not-quite-healed shoulder, leaning on the frame of the entryway. _'Okay… unlocked cell door and a clear path… I think I have a little right to be sceptical.' _

Or maybe it_ hadn't_ been left open by accident. There was a nagging feeling in his gut that this was all a set up; it just seemed a little_ too_ convenient. Still… it wasn't like he had much choice but to proceed. Or he could just sit around and wait until the self-proclaimed demon lord came back.

Yeah, _not likely._

He started forwards, but cautiously, he had to get back to the sky somehow. The dragon could wait. Find Fi and get away from here - that was at the top of his list of priorities at the moment.

* * *

><p>Ghirahim barely paid the scorching heat any attention as he wandered throughout the various tunnels and caverns of the volcano. Having just gone to examine the ancient drawings in the heart of the Fire Sanctuary once again, the demon lord found he had nothing to do. So he set himself a goal, "It has to be somewhere around here…" he muttered, annoyance crept into his tone. He disappeared and rematerialized on the other side of a small river of lava, not sparing so much as a glance towards the monsters that dwelled in it and without breaking his pace.<p>

He headed down another tunnel, growing more impatient by the second.

Bokoblins were absolute morons. Forgetting where they put something of this value – _aha!_

He finally spotted it, lodged in the stone floor of the particular cavern of the volcano, tossed aside like trash. Such treatment! Some of his minions were definitely going to die later…

He strode over to it. Not that he was _fond_ of the blade itself, but he knew a magnificent sword when he saw one. And it definitely deserved more respect than this.

He grasped the handle of the Master Sword firmly, easily yanking it out of the ground to get a better look at it. He turned it over in his hands, studying the rather impressive craftsmanship of the sacred blade. It looked different from the last time he saw it… The once light teal hilt had shifted to a deep purple-blue with different patterns and designs carved into it. Two wing-like protrusions had folded out from the top of the handle as well. Carved in the steel just above the hilt of the blade was the symbol of the long-sought-after Golden Power.

The actual body of the blade was longer, sharper and different in shape. "So this is what the power of the Sacred Flames can do…" he mused, looking at it from different angles before giving it an experimental slice – light and easily maneuverable. The power he could sense rolling off of the sword in waves was staggering.

He mentally chastised himself for allowing the sky child to obtain something like this…this blade posed an actual threat.

…But it also wasn't much use to the boy if he didn't have it in his possession. Ghirahim smirked, "Yes, a sword is useless without a master to wield it…"

"…_Though according to my previous personality and character analysis, you think there is a special exception for you."_ The words drifted from nowhere to his ears. If he was even the slightest surprised by this he didn't show it.

"Well, if my accomplishments thus far haven't proven that, I don't know what does." He retorted, not needing to turn to see the Goddess's little helper appear in blue light. He couldn't help but wonder just how much she _really _knew. "…But I'm not entirely sure what you're talking about, _do_ enlighten me." He said in a pleasant tone, casting his gaze towards her. Her petite deep purple and azure blue form floated a short distance away, solid pupil-less eyes fixed on him, holding no expression whatsoever.

"_There is a ninety percent probability that that is a lie and you are aware of it. You and I are alike in the sense that we are both weapons that serve our Master's."_ She spoke in her odd melodic voice.

So_ this _was the spirit of the Master Sword. Huh. He couldn't exactly say he was _impressed._ For such a powerful blade, he expected something a little more… exuberant. Never the less he thought he'd kept up a conversation, at least for a little while.

"Ah, so you _do _know." He began to walk again, circling her with the sword still in hand, twirling it around once before lashing out at a keese that had dared wander too close. He stopped when he was on the other side of her and the sword spirit swivelled to face him. "…Strange that we've met in battle, yet never actually have spoken face to face…" Sweeping his arm out, he bowed low in an exaggerated gesture of greeting, "Well, it is a _pleasure_ to meet you, Fi." He said, there was no hiding the mocking undertone in his voice but Fi didn't seem to notice.

"_I'm afraid I cannot confirm the same to you." _She replied starkly, Ghirahim noticed her eyes narrow the _slightest_ bit.

"What's the matter? Feeling lonely since I separated you from the sky brat?" He taunted, a grin spread across his face, "It must be nerve-racking knowing you can't do anything to help him… being bound to this sword must be troublesome." Dangling the Master Sword between two fingers, he nonchalantly began to pace in front of her.

"…_.."_ Fi decided not to respond to that so Ghirahim continued.

"But even if you weren't, it's not like you would be any match for me anyways." He drawled, "Unlike you I can move around, I have freedom, and I'm not entirely dependent on my Master. I honestly don't know WHAT the Goddess was thinking when she created you." He hoped to goad some sort of a reaction from her with his understated insult. Still, she remained completely calm and collected, showing no signs of having taken any offense at all. Well, _that_ was no fun…

Instead she floated up a few feet, raising her chin slightly.

"_You overestimate yourself."_ Her tone was almost mechanical. Too machine-like, too boring… he found he was starting to dislike this spirit. _"Confidence in ones abilities' is one thing, overconfidence is another. Unlike you, I am not subjected to such feelings. Feelings that, I may add, are likely to result in disaster… if you're not careful." _

He frowned, what was she trying to say...? "…I'm guessing that was your way of telling a joke."

"_Negative. I do not tell jokes."_ She stated flatly.

"I can see that…" He resisted the urge to roll his eyes and turned away from her. Bantering with her was like bantering with a potato, except only about half as entertaining. Deciding to change the subject, he said, "So… do you think Link is awake yet? I've just been _dying_ to get on with our little _game."_ Ghirahim glanced down at the blade still in his hands, he'd have to find a place for this later…

"…_I'm not liable to reveal that information." _Fi replied after a few moments.

"Hm. Too bad, I'll just have to go check for myself then." He turned back to her, "Well it has been nice talking to you, Fi, but unfortunately you're not of my interest at the moment." Then the Master Sword disappeared from his hands, Fi's presence soon followed before she could say anything else. He didn't make the sword and its spirit vanish from existence, they were just sent to another area for now.

'_Now,' _he thought, eyes narrowing slightly, _'time to deal with more important matters…'_ The child had to be awake now for sure, it had been hours and the demon lord was becoming… restless.

With that he raised his hand above his head and snapped his fingers, making his signature flashy exit.

* * *

><p>…Link spoke too soon; a clear path wouldn't exactly be the best way to describe it.<p>

It looked like the bokoblins had made themselves pretty comfortable around here. Not only was the place crawling with the hideous red mooks, it appeared that the Eldin Volcano had been completely overtaken. What on earth was the dragon doing? Letting his territory be invaded like this…

He stood at the top of a small slope, having just emerged from the tunnel that led back to the cavern where the cell was located. From his viewpoint he could see various bokoblins patrolling the fortress-like area they had set up at the base of the volcano. Watchtowers were dotted everywhere; the lanterns and torches they held gave off a bright yellow light. With the sky darkened by volcanic ash, the lava itself was the only other light source, bathing everything in a dim amber glow.

He heard movement to the right and darted against the wall of the tunnel, two bokoblins came into view, obviously patrolling. He waited, pressed flat against the stone, until they passed and their indistinct chattering faded from earshot. Good thing they were stupid or he would've been spotted for sure.

Releasing a breath, he sunk down until he was sitting with his back against the rock. He needed a plan. Charging into this head on, injured and not even knowing where to start looking for his sword, would be the death of him. The odds were definitely not in his favour, and knowing his luck, he guessed that the Master Sword wouldn't be anywhere close by.

He groaned, _'Why… why… WHY can't this ever be easy?'_ He closed his eyes and let his head hit the wall lightly with each 'why'.

His gaze was soon drawn upwards towards the blackened sky overhead, eyes widening slightly. There was no gaping opening in the clouds like usual. That could _not_ be a good sign, what if he couldn't return to Skyloft? He gnashed his teeth together in apprehension, Ghirahim had something to do with this and he knew it.

'_He's really dead-set on keeping me here, isn't he?'_ Link thought grimly.

He still couldn't shake the resonating sense of _wrong_ about the whole thing, he felt like he was about to walk into a trap and there was nothing he could do about it but move forward… He sighed and pushed himself up, if there really was no other way, then _fine._

The dagger was still clenched in his hand; he supposed it was better than traipsing around this place without any weapon at all.

He'd play this game.

* * *

><p>That watchtower. That<em> goddamn<em> watchtower.

The hollow sound of a monsters horn reached his ears. He turned and looked up in alarm, he'd been spotted. And he'd been doing so well!

Shrill bokoblin cries filled the air and thunderous footsteps from the path behind him signalled that it was time to stop being stealthy and _run. _Ignoring his body's protest, he did just that. There was no way he could fight off _that _many. The searchlight glared down at him from above, its operator seemingly shrieking orders to the other bokoblins.

It wasn't like there was any way to _avoid_ the damn thing, attempting to sneak around it certainly didn't work…

He darted around a corner, booking it down the path to the left. Glancing over his shoulder he saw that the bokoblins were catching up fast, a few shrieked in triumph as they saw him. Link pulled back his arm and let the red dagger he had been holding fly into the crowd of gathering red monsters. One of them fell but the others hardly noticed. He turned to run again.

A sharp whistle and something whizzed by his head, an arrow. Link swore and whirled to see an archer positioned on higher ground, another arrow drawn back, aimed straight for the young hero. He threw himself to the side as the small projectile was launched at him. It grazed his hip and he let out a cry, clutching the new gash. Without hesitation he bolted, pushing the pain to the back of his mind as he heard the bokoblins still pursuing. He kept running until they were no longer in earshot.

Soon, the path curved around into a small cliff, one side dropped off to lava. He paused to catch his breath, grimacing slightly. He felt liquid on his fingers, tentatively removing his hand from his side, he predictably found it was covered in red. A wave of nausea rushed over him and he wrapped both arms around his stomach, leaning against the wall opposite the edge and coughing.

Not now… he had to get moving…

But to _where?_

The crashing sound of stone hitting stone snapped his attention upwards to see chunks of rock raining down on him. He ducked and covered his head with a grunt. None of the pieces were enough to do serious damage but definitely enough to leave bruises.

He frantically looked around, where did _that _come from?

His eyes settled on the volcano, in the distance he could see a round shadow launched into the air, coming closer… _closer…_

With a startled yell he flung himself barely out of the way as the moderate sized sphere of earth smashed into the cliff wall. Great, they were catapulting _boulders _at him now? Not only that but their aim getting _better._

The force sent him staggering backwards, though a little _too _far. His left foot met nothing but air where there should have been ground, brain taking a few moments to register the shock, body suddenly feeling sickeningly weightless. The stone under his right foot crumbled away, and then he began to plummet, hands reaching out but finding nothing to hold onto. His eyes widened as his gaze fell on the lava below – this had to be the end for sure.

…Or so he thought.

Five fingers wrapped around his forearm, effectively halting his fall and leaving him to dangle around thirty feet, or so, in the air above the lava. He couldn't believe it. He really could have died there. He would never have seen Zelda again. He would have failed her.

_Ghirahim would have won._

In a sort of numb state of surprise, Link turned his head upwards to see who had saved him from certain death.

… And realized falling into the lava might not have been so bad after all.

"You really should be careful where you step."

Speak of the devil.

Link growled, shooting a glare up at the sneering demon lord. "Shut up!" He yelled, just about fed up with Ghirahim's condescending attitude.

"Watch it." Ghirahim purposefully loosened his grip, letting Link drop down a few inches. The teen let out a yelp before he was caught again, this time grabbed by the hand, "I might not feel like saving you next time."

"There won't _be_ a next time and I never wanted_ you _to save me." The aggravated hero shot back.

"Oh believe me, the feeling is mutual. Seeing you burning to death would've been _such_ an appealing image." Ghirahim said lazily, "…But unfortunately you are still needed so get up here." In the next moment both him _and_ Link disappeared into diamond shapes, only to reappear a short distance away from the ledge where Link had fallen. Dazed by the sudden trip, Link had no time to react as his arms were pulled behind his back and he was shoved against the wall opposite the ledge. He felt a hand on the back of his neck firmly holding him in place.

Snapping out of it, he immediately he began to struggle, only to cease when one of his wrists was pulled painfully up between his shoulder blades. He hissed in discomfort at his arm being bent at an awkward angle.

"I'll admit, that wasn't a bad little escape attempt you made there." That _voice_ was in his ear again, "Ultimately pointless, but still entertaining to watch."

Link growled, "You left the cell open. I don't see how that counts as an 'escape'."

"Well, it would've been boring if you were all cooped up now wouldn't it?" Ghirahim tilted his head in mock thoughtfulness, "Why not let you run around a bit, tire yourself out and make you _think_ you have a chance of getting out of this?" His words confirmed Link's suspicions. Vexed by the fact that Ghirahim took sick pleasure out of watching him play an unwinnable game, Link resumed his struggles. "I'm telling – no, _proving _to you right now that you don't."

Ghirahim tugged Link's wrist up further, earning an audible cry from him. It felt like his shoulder was about to pop out of its socket… which was most likely the bastard's intention.

"Aww, uncomfortable?" he spoke with feigned concern. Link wished he could turn and knock the other so hard in the face that his fist would come flying out the other side of Ghirahim's head.

"A little bit, yeah." Link managed to say between his teeth, "Now, if you would kindly_ remove yourself."_ Ghirahim clicked his tongue in disapproval.

"Tsk… that snark really isn't helping your current situation…" he let Link's arms go, much to the boy's temporary relief, only to swing him around give him a hard shove. Link landed on all fours but quickly turned to face Ghirahim, clutching his sore shoulder and glaring at the man towering over him.

With a snarl, Ghirahim delivered a fierce kick to Link's ribs, blood and spit flew from the boy's mouth as the wind was knocked clean out of him. Another kick and he was sent into a coughing fit, arms wrapped tightly around his stomach as he curled in on himself. Switching targets, Ghirahim aimed for his head this time and the hero's vision exploded into stars and pain before darkening completely.

He came to on his back about a minute later. The blackened sky was the only thing in his field of vision before a pale face came into view.

"You're only making this harder for yourself you know." Link suddenly felt pressure gradually being put on his already aching shoulder but was too tired to do anything about it…. until it became a painful force bearing down on him. He tried to throw the weight off but Ghirahim kept his foot planted firmly on the young hero's shoulder. The demon lord sighed, leaning over Link slightly, "Or maybe you just like excruciating pain…"

The scream that ripped from the young hero's lungs was morbidly satisfying as he stomped down, feeling the joint cave and dislocate. Leaving Link to writhe on the ground, he removed his foot and stepped away, not even looking at him. Instead he folded his arms and gazed up at the sinister looking volcano, eyes narrowing slightly in thought. Hm, that _might _just do it…

Behind him, Link managed to get to his hands and knees, head bowed, breaking hard. The heat, blinding pain and stress were beginning to take their toll… He wanted out of this. He couldn't stand another minute around this psychopath. But he would have to put up with it, for Zelda's sake.

"Why are you doing this?" He coughed, raising his head and opening his icy blue eyes.

Ghirahim scoffed, tossing a scornful look over his shoulder, "You're a fool if you don't know why."

"I meant," he slowly rose to his feet, though still slightly hunched over from the pain, his right arm hung uselessly at his side, "since when did tormenting me become such a goddamn_ sport_ to you?"

Ghirahim seemed amused by this.

"Good question, but I honestly don't know." He shrugged innocently, before dropping his arms. "Perhaps it was when I found you constantly interfering with my plans, thwarting me at every turn… You're really the only obstacle between me and my goal, if you weren't here everything would be going as planned." His tone grew more and more malicious as he continued on. "And I need you alive… how ironic. _If only I had killed you back when…" _He trailed dropping to a dangerous tone again as his fingers twitched at his sides, curling and uncurling into fists in a rather disturbing fashion. Link could've sworn he felt the temperature around them drop a few degrees, but it might've just been his imagination.

"… But I'm getting off track. Somehow I find that increasingly easy to do when I'm around you…" Ghirahim seemed to calm himself, if only for the time being. He took a deep breath and spun to face the boy with a faux smile to mask his simmering anger.

Link bit back a remark about the demon lord's uncontrollable temper, knowing it wouldn't get him anywhere. He settled for simply glaring at the other.

"I almost forgot the reason I came down here in the first place… other than to save you from falling to your demise." Ghirahim said, advancing towards the teen that backed away, getting ready to turn and run back down the path… not that it would do him much good.

"Oh come now, there's something I want to show you." The demon lord's tone was light, friendly almost. He continued to smile as he drew close and that was the most unnerving thing.

Link shook his head, not taking his eyes off of Ghirahim, "Whatever it is, I'm damn sure I don't want to see."

Hands on his upper arms stopped him from backing up any further and Ghirahim was no longer in front of him, Link tensed. That teleportation ability again! The hands gave a small squeeze and sharp pain shot throughout him, stemming from his injured shoulder, he stifled a gasp.

"_I insist."_ Ghirahim hissed lowly into the young hero's ear before everything around the two dissolved into diamond shapes. The most uncomfortable cold sensation washed over Link as everything darkened to pitch black for a brief moment before suddenly reappearing the same way it had vanished. New surroundings reconstructed themselves; they were no longer at the foot of the volcano but in what appeared to be one of the chambers inside the Fire Sanctuary. Link barely had the time to glance around before a huge wave of vertigo hit and the ground rushed up to meet his knees.

Ghirahim blinked, slightly dazed himself. Teleporting individually was no problem and required minimal concentration. Teleporting with someone else was a whole different story, and it took twice as much energy if that person wasn't cooperative.

But that was of little importance right now. Ghirahim strode forwards, past Link and towards the center of the room that they had arrived in. The room was large and circular with a high ceiling and a pit of lava sitting in the middle. Several bokoblins were standing around the edge of the pit but that wasn't the most notable thing about this particular chamber.

The rattling of chains drew Link's attention upwards. On one side of the circular pool of lava there was some sort of a pully system that two bokoblins stood near, the chain from it ran to the middle of the ceiling. Link's eyes followed the chain and widened slightly at whom he saw suspended from it.

The mole-like creature was busy shouting curses at the bokoblins and didn't seem to take notice of the two people that had suddenly entered the room. Ghirahim folded his arms over his chest and glanced up at the thing in mild annoyance.

It was a Mogma from before, one that Link had helped before in the Fire Sanctuary...

The young hero could only look at the demon lord in puzzlement, "What…? I don't…"

"Silence." Ghirahim said sharply, both Link and the Mogma fell quite. The badger slowly turned its head to look in the direction of the two, fear evident in its eyes at seeing the demon lord standing right there.

"From what my minions tell me, this Mogma made a valiant effort to try and assist you." Ghirahim explained, turning to face Link with an expression of disdain. "Admirable really, but I'm about to show you what happens to those who oppose me…" He gave a nod towards the bokoblins and, taking their cue, one of them hit a switch on the contraption they stood by. The chain began to lower the Mogma.

"Whoa!" it yelled in panic, flailing wildly in a vain attempt to get free. "Can't we talk about this?"

Ghirahim ignored it, completely uninterested. The Mogma looked at Link with an apologetic expression, "Hey…uh, sorry I couldn't make it to you in time. I saw them drag you off and I pursued but… I was careless and they got me." It said, glancing down at the steadily nearing lava with trepidation. "Heh, I guess it serves me right, I'm no good as a treasure hunter if I got caught by a few ugly dwarfs." It managed to laugh bitterly as it resigned itself to its impending fate.

Unable to say anything, Link could only gape in growing horror as it was lowered halfway into the liquid rock. The Mogma screamed on contact, a terrible hissing sound filled the air soon followed by the acrid scent of burning flesh. Link could hardly watch - he jerked his head away and clenched his eyes shut, suppressing the urge to gag. He could still hear its shrieks of agony as it was basically roasted alive. The bokoblins howled at the entertainment they were getting treated to.

He felt a hand roughly grab his head and force him to look back at the scene, but he refused to open his eyes. He didn't want to see it; no creature deserved that kind of torment! And he couldn't do anything to stop it. He couldn't do anything to help the one that was trying to help _him_ in the first place and that left a very foul feeling in his stomach.

An agonizingly slow five minutes ticked by before it finally went silent. Link tentatively opened his eyes, promptly wishing he hadn't.

Fatigue, dehydration and pain from numerous injuries combined with the visual of the severely charred Mogma dangling lifeless over the pool of lava was too much. He turned to the side and emptied whatever was in his stomach, which hadn't been very much to begin with. Ghirahim made a noise of disgust and released his hold on the boy's hair, stepping away and leaving him to retch.

"Hm… isn't it such a shame to see someone completely innocent die with you being the cause of it?" Ghirahim spoke softly, "Though next time, I can assure you that it won't be some worthless Mogma."

Link didn't like the sound of that. He coughed, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand, "What… do you mean?"

The demon lord pointedly avoided the question, "I don't believe I've ever visited that quaint little island in the sky yet…" Ghirahim let that sink in for a moment, turning away to hide a wicked smile, he could only imagine the look on the child's face as he understood what his words meant.

"You wouldn't _dare."_ Link stated, tone deadly calm. Bringing his_ home_ into this… Ghirahim had hit an all-time low. The people of Skyloft weren't involved, nor should they be.

"I would." "… Unless you're willing to reveal the location of the Spirit Maiden, otherwise…" "Well, you know what happens. It's entirely your choice though."

Actually, it wasn't much of a choice at all. Talk, people die. Don't talk, people die. It was a lose-lose situation either way.

If looks could kill, Ghirahim most likely would've been dead and buried with the glare the sky child was giving him. Link gave no verbal answer, not that one was needed, it was clear that the child _had_ no answer to that. He was merely trying to cover it up with a futile attempt at intimidation.

Ghirahim laughed, but without humour, "Tell you what, how about I give you some time to think about it?"

He suddenly appeared behind Link again and in some demented way, the young hero was getting used to this. He pulled Link to his feet. The diamonds appeared again, warping them to a new location: a plain circular chamber. Ghirahim shoved Link forwards and away from him, the hero spun around quickly to face his enemy, shaking his head slightly and blinking to dispel the dizziness.

"In the meantime," Ghirahim stalked towards Link, that malicious glint returning to his eyes, "I'm going to teach you some respect."

"Respect? You? I think this volcano will freeze over before _that_ happens!" He charged at Ghirahim with all he had, fully intending to kill, not that it was likely that he could do so considering his current state, but he was beyond caring. A swift backhand was all it took from the demon lord to send him reeling backwards, stumbling but catching himself before he could fall.

"Hn… that's exactly what I'm talking about." Ghirahim sighed dramatically, brushing his hair out of his face before continuing. "Honestly, you are so inconsiderate sometimes! Here I am giving you a chance to make up your mind on a difficult decision, and you repay me like this?" He placed a hand over his chest, where his heart would be if he had one – and Link was certain he didn't – and closed his eyes, shaking his head sorrowfully. "That hurts my feelings, it really does."

"You_ cannot_ be serious."Link growled, absolutely in _no mood _for Ghirahim's usual theatrics.

The demon lord dropped his little act, giving the child a scornful look, he lowered his hand to his side. "Innocent people don't have to die, Link… stop this foolishness and tell me where she is. Do that and I'll leave your precious little floating chunk of rock alone, I promise…"

As expected, Link's only response was a scathing glare. Ghirahim sighed in mild exasperation.

"Though there's something else that has been bothering me as of late…" He said, spreading his arms wide, seemingly gesturing to the chamber they were in, "This is quite possibly the deepest part of the volcano, and where the temperatures are at their peak. Any normal human being would probably have been reduced to a pile of charred bones by now… how is it that you still live?"

Without warning he rushed forwards and seized one of the hero's wrists (of the arm that wasn't dislocated, luckily) and threw him against the far wall. Link hissed in mild discomfort as his hand was pressed flat against the scalding hot stone, though it didn't actually hurt him, his skin should've burned on contact but it didn't. A bright reddish-yellow was emitted from the two items keeping him from being harmed by the lethal temperature – the Fireshield Earrings.

Seeing this, Ghirahim narrowed his eyes, "Huh… that's what I thought." He hooked a finger in one of the earrings, giving a slight tug. Link winced and before shooting an acid filled-glare at the demon lord, who just ignored him, "I've heard of these before … the material is very rare but they grant the wearer protection against extremely hot temperatures if, I'm not mistaken."

And then Ghirahim leapt back, simultaneously ripping the earring clean from the young hero's ear, earning a tantalized screech. Link clutched his hand to the side of his head, feeling warm liquid running down his neck from the torn ear. Vision going blurry for a second, he clenched his eyes shut and leaned back against the wall.

"But too my knowledge, they function as a _pair."_ Now back at the center of the chamber, Ghirahim held the earring up, examining it before twirling it around his index finger tauntingly,"I wonder how you'll do with only _one _of them."

'_Damn!'_ Link thought. He could already feel the temperature rising – fivefold, tenfold… as much as the lone earring he still possessed tried to stop it, the protection it created was drastically weakened. Ghirahim saw the panic that flickered across the young hero's face and smiled. Yes, the prospect of being burned alive was quite the terrifying one indeed…

Breathing was becoming more and more difficult for Link, his throat felt like the Lanayru Desert in the middle of the day. The heat was pressing down on him, constricting his air. His skin crawled, feeling like it was about to burst into flames at any given moment… and it probably would, if not for the remaining Fireshield Earring.

Ghirahim was contemplating removing the other earring, but decided against it; the twerp wasn't much use if he was dead. Instead, another idea crossed his wicked mind, one that he was growing rather fond of with each passing second… "Tell you what," he called to the sky child who was desperately trying to remain standing, "since I'm feeling particularly nice today, I'll let you have this back…"

Link was barely paying any attention to what the demon lord was saying, trying to focus on anything but the dreadful heat and breathing. Breathing… breathing…

"But on one condition…"

His vision was going blurry; he could scarcely keep his eyes open against the blistering inferno. His head lolled on his shoulders and by accident he let his right temple touch the wall and a sharp hissing sound soon followed. He jerked away from the wall with a cry of pain.

"You swallow your pride and bow to me right now." That got his attention. Ghirahim smirked as the boy gave him the most disbelieving look. "… Or, if you prefer, I could leave you in here for a few hours while I make a little trip to the sky…"

But that wouldn't be necessary apparently, logic rode over instinct. The sky child was already making his way over to him. He raised a brow, not expecting this so easily but pleased all the same.

Link grit his teeth together, he wasn't doing this because he was _submitting _to Ghirahim, he just saw no point in being left in a scorching hot room to slowly burn while the demon left to cause havoc. Unlike a certain someone, his ego wasn't so inflated that he couldn't put up with a little humiliation if it meant keeping others safe.

Still… that didn't make the situation any less demoralizing.

Reluctantly, Link sunk to his hands and knees in front of his enemy. He grunted as his palms touched the ground, biting his lip to keep from crying out as the skin burned on contact.

"Lower." he could almost hear the smile in the bastard's voice; Ghirahim was enjoying this far too much. Never the less, Link complied; bowing his head until his nose almost touched the floor. He just wanted this moment to be over with…

Ghirahim drew this out for a few more painful seconds, savouring the perfect image of his enemy at his feet. Finally he nodded his head, satisfied.

"Good." With a casual flick of the hand, he tossed the small ring of red stone to land on the floor in front of Link.

The hero's hand closed around the earring, as soon as he touched it the weight of the unbearably hot temperature lifted. He breathed a sigh of relief and stuffed the earring in his pocket, seeing nowhere else to put it. He slowly pushed himself to his feet but was stopped as a swift kick was dealt to the back of his knees, effectively sending him back to the floor.

"Did I_ say _you could rise?" Ghirahim demanded.

"Like I need _your_ permission!" Link snapped back, inwardly cringing at how scratchy his voice sounded.

"Huh… looks like I really will have to teach you some manners after all." The demon lord clicked his tongue, "I suggest you remove your shirt."

Link's shocked, appalled and incredulous expression could all be summed up in one syllable.

"_What?"_

"You heard me." Ghirahim narrowed his eyes, staring back evenly. He dipped his head slightly and a shadow fell over his face, ensuring Link that he was completely serious, "… Or would you rather I do it for you?" There was no evidence that he was even remotely joking in his tone.

After a few moments of intense glaring, Link sighed and reluctantly did as he was told, peeling off the layers and casting them to the side with bitterness. He knew what the demon lord was trying to do… it wouldn't work, it would not work. He had to remain calm; whatever the sadist was planning he couldn't let it faze him. Fear was exactly what he_ wanted_ to see.

And then he felt the same chains from before wind around his wrists and jerk him upwards. Link snarled in torment as his dislocated shoulder was forced into a new agonizing position. Now suspended at least two feet off the ground with his back facing Ghirahim, he couldn't see what the other was planning, though he _did_ hear that dreaded snap of the fingers followed by a small swishing sound…

He jerked forward in shock, a startled cry escaping his lips as what felt like a thin line of fire spread across his bare back.

_CRACK!_

Another line joined the first, the breath rushed from his body.

_CRACK!_

Link bit his lip as the harsh, stinging pain shot throughout him, adding to the pain of his injuries from before.

_CRACK!_

What was – no, it couldn't be…

_CRACK!_

Flinching as he was struck again, he risked a glance over his shoulder to see Ghirahim let the weapon fly once more.

_CRACK!_

He screamed before letting his head drop, the previous wound on his side had been hit, he felt blood run down his skin as it was reopened. Ghirahim momentarily paused, twirling the peculiar looking whip lazily and taking in the sight of the child gasping for breath. It made him chuckle a bit, seeing his enemy reduced to this. He raised his arm again.

Even through the blinding pain from all of his injuries, Link still found that he couldn't believe his _own_ weapon was being used against him.

_CRACK!_

A few tears of pain sprang forth and he clenched his eyes shut. How could anything hurt this much?

_CRACK!_

… Though it didn't sting nearly as much as the humiliation of it all.

_Crack!_

He was biting his lip so hard that his top and bottom teeth met each other. Blood flowed freely from the now broken skin. He tugged at the chains binding his hands above his head and twisted in an effort to free himself, all in vain of course.

_CRACK!_

It didn't cease, lashing after lashing was brought upon his exposed back, each strike feeling worse than the last. He lost count after a while. He could scarcely hold back his sharp cries of agony that punctuated the silence, echoing around the chamber and rebounding back to his ears in a cruel reminder that this was his and _only his_ torture.

He should've expected this;_ of course _Ghirahim would go for a most degrading form of punishment!

A few drops of moisture managed to escape from his eyes, spilling down his cheeks, though they evaporated almost instantly.

"_Stop!"_ His mouth blurted the word before he could prevent himself. Ghirahim blinked at the sudden outburst, lowering his arm.

Then his white lips curved into a slow smile.

"I'm sorry, what was that?" He let the whip strike again, wrenching another scream from the boy. An all too enjoyable sound.

"Just… stop." The young hero heard himself say, it didn't even feel like he was speaking.

"I didn't quite catch that… you'll have to speak louder."

"Please… please stop." He moaned weakly. No! He would not be reduced to begging, he was stronger than that!

He anticipated the next strike. It never came.

And he could hear the approach of the demon behind him.

Ghirahim absentmindedly ran a hand up Link's back, deliberately brushing against the various fresh lacerations and burns and causing the hero to let out a pathetic whimper. He circled around, inclining his head and surveying the child's current condition. Link raised his head slightly, not quite having the strength to summon a glare.

"See? That was all I wanted to hear. That wasn't so hard now, was it?" Ghirahim said sweetly, raising a hand to gently caress the side of Link's face. He stared blankly back, blue eyes devoid of any sort of expression. _Progress…_

Still nowhere near broken, but at least he'd gotten _somewhere._ An indent, a crack if he was lucky, but he was never the less closer to shattering the child's resolve. He narrowed his eyes, flicking his tongue out in a rather disturbing manner.

"Remember what I said before, it's entirely up to you though. But, mark my words, you_ will _eventually tell me where _she_ is."

And with that, he stepped back, disappearing and leaving Link alone in silence.


	4. Chapter 4 Worthless

"You're slower this time around."

At once, all chances of possible escape came crashing down in one quick moment. The first glimmer of hope he'd seen in days died right before his eyes as he turned, heart pounding in his chest, confirming with dread that it was indeed his enemy that had spoken.

Careless._ So_ careless.

The volcanic path had been clear, not a monster or bokoblin in sight, but it was so _open_. Maybe it was hunger affecting him, or dehydration, or the demon lords' relentless methods of torment finally taking their toll both physically and mentally (which he refused to believe), but by some bout of stupidity he had went for it, and he'd been seen. He felt like kicking himself for falling for something so obvious, unfortunately he did not possess the strength to, venturing this far had already taken so much out of him.

_Why?_ Why now? He could sense Fi nearby… she was _so close._

And then _this._

The one that had caused so much grief gracefully leapt down from an above ledge and landed nimbly on the path in front of him, barring his way.

Link felt fury surge through his system, almost overriding the immense physical stress he was under.

Ghirahim smirked, straitening up from his half crouched position and licking his lips. The frustration rolling off of the boy was almost tangible and _oh so delicious._ "That's five."

'Five' referred to the number of times Link had attempted escape in just the two days since capture, and the number of times he'd also been caught.

Link didn't trust himself to respond – he knew perfectly well how many times he had failed – it wasn't worth the breath. He closed his eyes, any moment now they'd be back in that dreaded chamber and he'd be forced to endure whatever hideous 'fun' the demon lord had planned. He gripped his bare shoulder (the tunic had become beyond wearable after about the third time he'd been recaptured), feeling the numerous half-healed scars that marred his skin, both new and… less new. The shoulder, thankfully, was not dislocated anymore, courtesy of forced fairy magic.

He opened his eyes after several moments, shooting a dagger-filled glare at the demon lord to show that he had not given in, he was still defiant.

Ghirahim was not amused, he lowered his eyelids slightly. The child's attitude had gotten old long ago, "Do you _ever_ tire of this…?" he placed a hand on his hip, "I know I can't STAND playing the same game for too long. Too… repetitive…" he looked thoughtful for a moment before a wicked smirk crossed his face, "Let's change things up a bit, shall we?" Link unconsciously took a step back, more than a little intimidated by the others words, a little more than he'd like to admit. His eyes widened slightly, trepidation evident on his face.

As much as he enjoyed the boys' reaction, Ghirahim had something entirely different in mind.

"Your sword is that way." he said, throwing a glance over his shoulder down the path before looking back at the very confused Link. He held up a hand, splaying his fingers, "Five minutes is all I offer you."

Then he dipped his head slightly, looking the sky child straight in the eye, _"Run."_

Link did.

No point in questioning it, it was obviously another one of the demon lords set ups, but there wasn't much else he could do. He gritted his teeth, feeling like the prey being toyed with by the predator. He hated it. He absolutely hated it!

Ghirahim made no move to stop him as he ran by and Link didn't bother looking back; he wanted to put as much space in between him and his enemy as possible, even if it was only temporary. He ignored how sore his body felt, just focusing on putting one foot in front of the other, although each step felt worse than the last. Soon the volcanic path turned to that of tiled stone; somehow he had ended up inside the Fire Sanctuary.

He ran blindly, taking turns throughout the hallways of the temple. He could sense Fi clearly now, she was close, and he had a pretty good guess on where exactly she was located. He came up to a door and with some effort he managed to open it. It led out to a familiar area, the main part of the Sanctuary, an outdoor section with lava pools dotted everywhere.

Link leaned on the wall beside him, catching his breath, he was _so_ lucky that he hadn't run into any monsters along the way. How much time had passed? It had to be close to five minutes… he couldn't stop now!

But as soon as he pushed off the wall, he felt all of his strength leave him. A small gasp left his lips. No… he couldn't possibly be in _this_ bad of a condition, could he?

He sunk down to the tiled floor, knees buckling without his permission, the sudden, fleeting burst of adrenaline finally leaving him and being replaced by an overwhelming fatigue. He had come out on the right side of the main room of the Fire Sanctuary, said room was just up ahead… how was it that he couldn't find the strength to cover the remaining distance between him and that room?

Vision blurring and darkening, he placed his hands on the floor to stop himself from collapsing completely.

That was just it, wasn't it? He wasn't strong enough. Two days had already passed. _Two days._ In that time he probably could have had the other two pieces of the song collected. Hell, he probably could have been done with this whole gruelling mission already, his best friend would be safe, all of this would have been over…

If he couldn't escape, if he couldn't beat Ghirahim now, how could he even hope to do it after, say, a few more rounds of torture? Would he even be in any condition to continue? Would he…

Link bit his lip. No, under any circumstances, for whatever reason, he would _not_ allow himself to crack. He'd sooner die than give in, whatever Ghirahim threw at him, he could take it. He _had_ to take it.

He took a deep breath, raising his head to the sky above. He couldn't help but feel a sudden, somewhat justified, flash of anger. The people of Skyloft didn't have to go through this, they probably had no idea what was even going on!

The sheer amount of frustration bearing down on him was too much to handle. He was tasked to fulfil a destiny that had been thrust upon him, _save this, save that… _but_ who_ would save _him?_

No one.

He let that bitter fact sink in, closing his eyes and lowering his head, the utter helplessness of the situation threatened to consume him.

_Save yourself… or die trying. _

He didn't want to die so that left only one other option.

Zelda's face flashed through his mind, his childhood friend that he'd sworn to protect. And he was determined to keep that promise. He couldn't die now. Blue eyes blazed with determination, his sword was literally _right over there,_ he could, and he _would,_ make it. Slowly but surely, he pushed himself up. It was like trying to fight against the force of a solid stone wall pressing down on him, but impossibly, he managed to do it. His stomach cramped, his lungs burned and his muscles screamed, but he only focused on his breathing, shoving the rest of the factors to the back of his mind.

Staggering to his feet, he began trudging forward. The frog-like monsters residing in the closest lava pool peered at him with mild curiosity, yet did not attack. Link ignored them; if he didn't bother them they would not bother him.

It felt like an eternity had gone by before he finally made it to the gigantic double doors, he nearly collapsed against them but steeled himself against the urge. He could rest later… how much later he didn't know…

This was one of the final rooms of the Fire Sanctuary. Fi, his only chance of escape, was just beyond these doors, he was positive of it. Without wasting any more time, he threw his weight against the door, pushing at it with his palms. An audible click was heard deep within the mechanisms of the giant lock before the door slowly creaked open.

He spotted it at once. The Master Sword, in all of its glory, sat in a pedestal perfectly centered in the chamber where the ancient drawings were located. Light glinted off of the steel, the inviting handle calling to him. Elated at finally being reunited, swordsman and blade, he quickly made his way over to it. The hilt began to glow a bright blue as he neared…

…Until a sudden blast of bright light threw him away from the blade. He cried out in surprise, landing painfully on his back with a grunt, skull cracking against the unyielding tile of the floor. He laid there, head spinning, unable to comprehend what had just happened.

A dark chuckle filled the room, rebounding off of the stone walls in a rather haunting manner. At once, Link knew what was about to come.

'… _Of course.'_ the young hero thought. Blood seeped through his dirty blonde hair to gather on the tile but he hardly noticed, vision swimming as he gazed up at the ceiling, _'It could not have been that easy. It's never that easy.'_

Faintly, he heard the sound of echoing footsteps approaching…

* * *

><p>From where I was viewing from, I could see the boy collapse to his knees. Pity… his sword was so close, and he appeared to be giving up.<p>

Either that or his physical state had just diminished to the point where he could hardly find the strength to walk.

I smiled in satisfaction, folding my arms over my chest.

The same sky child who had caused me countless problems, interfered with my plans on several occasions and had even defeated me not once, but _twice_, was now the same child practically _crawling_ in a futile attempt to get away from me. Yes, it was indeed much more fun to break him down this way…

Still… it impressed me that he'd lasted this long already… and it equally infuriated me.

I sighed, shaking my head slightly. Sometimes I wondered why I even bothered to play these games… I could kill him at any time I wished, but that would hardly be productive. True, finding the Gate of Time would be… difficult without the information the boy possessed… but not impossible. Link technically _wasn't_ required, though it would be _so much easier_ if he would just give in and tell me where the little Goddess was.

Maybe it was the challenge he posed that intrigued me so much, breaking such a rebellious spirit was not a simple task… that much was clear to me already. Actually, it had been ever since our first little encounter in the depths of the Skyview Temple where the hero had so boldly (and quite unwisely) challenged me, not knowing the threat I possessed. I could have ended him right there… but I _didn't,_ instead opting to toy around with him like a plaything…

I was not one to regret mistakes since I rarely made any but that one decision… it was driving me insane. Undeniably, Link _had_ grown stronger since then, and I could have prevented it by ending his life from the start!

That was probably it; it was some desire to prove that I didn't _need_ to kill the child to get what I want, that I was _still _stronger than him and I always would be.

Jolted from my thoughts, I blinked. Oh? What was this?

To my surprise, I saw Link slowly getting back to his feet, seemingly finding the motivation to continue. I felt a slight twinge of irritation.

Hm… I said five minutes, didn't I? Four minutes and forty-four seconds remained… but I was a considerate lord, so I _suppose_ I could allow a bit more time if he _really_ needed it.

And it looked like he did. He practically dragged himself towards the final room of the Fire Sanctuary, how he knew his blade was located there was beyond me… but I wasn't too surprised. After a few minutes of painfully slow trudging and nearly collapsing to his knees again a few times, he entered the room, the one where we had fought once before, and disappeared from sight. I raised my hand, snapping my fingers to teleport in pursuit.

Imagine his surprise when I rematerialized directly in front of him, sending a small burst of energy to throw him backwards and away from the sacred blade that he had been reaching for. He landed on his back, I can hear his head make contact with the ground – ouch, that must hurt.

A sharp gasp is audible from him, I laugh. His pain greatly amuses me.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk… you're far too slow, Link…" I tantalize, taking slow steps towards him, "Oh and you almost had it too! Such a shame."

He gives no response. He's not unconscious is he? I draw closer. No, his eyes are open, though not staring at anything in particular. I circle around so that I am on the other side of him, my back facing the door, which gives a few whirls and creaks before sealing shut once again. We are locked in – well, mostly _he_ is locked in.

"By the way, that was over five minutes. I was being considerate and gave you extra time, but in the end, it didn't look like it made much of a difference…" Sighing with feigned wistfulness, I shake my head, "Oh, if only you were quicker…"

I lean over his head slightly. He is upside down glaring at me now – it was a glare of resentment and poorly concealed pain. This pleases me.

"So it looks like you've wasted both of what precious time we have has been wasted…" I say, crouching down to balance on the balls of my feet, my elbows resting on my knees. "Time that could be spend attending to more important matters."

He strikes out at my face with his fist, I effortlessly bat away the trivial blow and grab his wrist, pinning it to the floor beside his head. Stupidly, he tries again with his other hand, the result is the same. I now hold both hands above his head; he's not in a very good position at the moment…

He still tries to sit up, but his current physical condition, combined with my strength, does not allow him to. He squirms, trying to free his hands, twisting his shoulders this way and that.

His struggles make me giggle, I let him tire himself out. He stops, panting, narrowing his sky blue eyes up at me in absolute loathing. I merely give him a smug grin that I know will infuriate him.

"Hate me, do you?" I tease.

"What the _fuck_ do you think?" He snaps back, resuming his struggles. This time he tries to bring his leg around to land a kick on me, I switch his wrists over to one hand, using the other to grab one of his index fingers.

"Now, now… no need to be like that…" I put the mildest amount of pressure on that appendage, he winces and stills, "Continue struggling and I'll have to break your fingers!" I intone cheerfully with a happy smile. His eyes widen slightly but he says nothing and does not move.

"Good boy."

That earns a growl from him.

I chuckle and release his finger, instead opting to run my hand through his hair, pulling it back over his ruined ear. I touch my fingers to the spot where the Fireshield Earring had once been placed, the skin is still torn, ragged and sensitive – he made a noise of discomfort to answer my action. I smile; causing him even the _slightest _amountof pain provided me with great entertainment… and it's even more delightful to know that he's powerless to stop me.

Oh! I just remembered something…

"You still haven't given me your answer," I croon, leaning over him more. "I believe I've given you enough time to think about it…"

On his chest and stomach there are numerous gashes, most of them scarring – it's such a lovely sight… I reach out and press my palm to a pretty recent looking one just over his sternum, applying pressure gradually. I glance down to gauge his reaction, he lets out a sharp gasp and when I pull my hand back, my glove is stained with blood. Ah, I've reopened the wound. Tiny rivulets of crimson branch out, contrasting nicely with his lightly coloured skin.

"I don't… know what you're talking about…" He grimaced, I scowled. Honestly, humans had such short attention spans!

"Don't tell me you've forgotten?" My voice betrays the slightest hint of annoyance, "Let me refresh your memory…" I bow my head low to look him straight in the eye, our foreheads almost touching, "I gave you two choices, that floating piece of rock, or the Spirit Maidens location. If you don't answer me now I'm going to assume you picked option number one." I hissed in a low voice.

Suddenly he jerked forward, bashing his forehead into mine. I reeled back, genuinely caught off guard.

"_Bastard!"_ He shouts, resuming his struggles once more, "Why don't you stop acting like a coward and fight me?"

For a moment he actually _almost_ managed to get free. That fact alone sends anger coursing through my system – _the little brat!_

_Snap!_

That wasn't my fingers.

Link gritted his teeth, suppressing a cry of pain as the uppermost joint of his index finger broke easily under my hand. Though it did little to pacify my temper, I wanted to hear him scream… again… and again… and again…

"That's just it, Link," I snarl under my breath, my eyes boring into his, "I tried playing nice before… but you've pushed me too far and now…"

_Snap!_

"…we play the game by _my rules,_ and my rules say you _will_ lie still and accept punishment."

I worked my way down, finger to finger, each snapping joint wrenching sharp grunts and cries from the boy's throat, and I STILL wasn't satisfied by the time his left hand was nothing but a mess of broken bones, rendered completely unusable. All throughout it he struggled, he jerked, he writhed, fruitlessly trying to free himself. Quite the fighter he was.

Now he lay, eyes screwed shut, face contorted in agony, shuddering panting escaping his lips. His chest rose and fell rapidly; I can only imagine what kind of pain he's in right now.

"Hurts, doesn't it?" I muttered lowly, still keeping his wrists pinned down with one hand. He gives no response, not that I expected one from him. I'd much prefer that he remain silent, unless the only reason he wanted to open his mouth was to reveal the Goddess' location… or to make more of those delightful sounds of anguish. Either way is perfectly alright with me.

"So…" I say, resting my chin on my other hand, "since you aren't going to tell me the location of the Goddess I suppose I should go pay Skyloft a visit then…"

"No." He answers automatically, his voice is strained.

I raised a brow, "Oh, so you _are_ going to tell me?"

"No." He repeated, turning his head to the side to hide his face from view. I could have sworn that I saw a tiny glimmer on his cheek, but I might've just imagined it. I gave an exasperated sigh, feeling like I was talking to a young child – which, technically I _was._

"There is no third option, boy. Do not test my patience, believe me, you walk a _very _thin line between life and death at the moment." I growl, forcing back my simmering temper.

"So I'll ask you once again, what is your answer?"

He mumbles something too low to hear. I frown in annoyance, cocking my ear towards him, "What was that?"

"I said I'M NOT ANSWERING TO YOU!" He yells, eyes snapping open into a fierce glare.

At once all of my fury bursts forth; I act immediately, unable to control myself. I'm not entirely sure what happened but suddenly Link is at the other end of the room, collapsed on his side in a pitiful heap. My hands crackle with energy, needing to direct it somewhere - I call a sword to existence with a snap.

But my grip on the weapon is unsteady, my fists are shaking… I was trembling with rage…. and this brat was responsible for it!

I cling to the only calming thought I possessed at the moment – the sky child lying lifeless in a pool of his own blood.

Exhaling slowly, I manage to bring myself back to a coherent state of mind. If I acted on impulse and accidentally ended his life, I would be deprived of the sheer enjoyment I get out of torturing him… and that really would not be any fun at all. No… I wasn't going to kill him. At least not yet. But he wouldn't get off without punishment.

I saunter forwards, towards him, and towards the Master Sword stuck in the pedestal I had conjured up earlier. I reach the blade first and rest my free hand on the hilt, staring at the sky child across from me. A soft groan was heard from him, he pushed himself up on his forearms with some difficulty, when he raised his head I saw that a trail of blood ran from his hairline to the edge of his jaw. He glared directly at me to show he was still defiant, even though he looked as if he'd been to hell and back.

No, hell would have been too _generous._

I almost laughed - did he not realize how_ pathetic_ he looked right now?

But I was just about tired of that rebellious spirit of his. If it was a fight he wanted, then so be it.

Something clattered to the floor in front of him and his eyes widened in surprise and puzzlement, before narrowing suspiciously. Never the less, he grabbed the sword I had thrown to him and staggered to his feet. It simply remarkable how he was able to even stand after all of the physical abuse I had put him through thus far… looks like humans were a lot more durable than I thought.

He was still no threat to me in the current condition he was in, with or without his sword. I'd be surprised if he even managed to defend himself!

Link faced me in a ready stance, blue eyes blazing with determination, but he looked ready to crumple. His left arm and mangled hand dangled at his side… damn, I should have broken the other hand – how funny it would have been seeing him trying to wield a sword with the hand that wasn't dominant.

But that wasn't of any real importance right now… no, right now I longed for bloodshed. And guess whose blood that would be?

I licked my lips – an odd habit I had developed – as I approached.

"Sky child," I hiss venomously, "I hope you know that after I'm done beating some sense into you, that island of yours… is _finished."_

That provokes a reaction, he snarls and starts forward, but stops himself cold when the Master Sword's hilt flashes blue. Most likely the little spirit wench advising him to be cautious, I did not like her one bit. It was definitely on my agenda to find a way to destroy that bloody sword later…

Whether she assisted him or not made no difference to me (not like her petty little percentages could actually _do_ anything anyways), it didn't matter how strong the sword was if the hand that held it was weak. And I was about to prove to him how weak he was!

He bares his teeth in a grimace, eyes widening in apprehension as I draw closer, raising my own onyx coloured blade.

"Understand this now, Link. You're nothing to me, you're scum. And I will enjoy draining every last drop of fighting spirit from your body!"

With that, I lunged.

* * *

><p>It could hardly be called a fight.<p>

Link strained to turn just in time, blocking Ghirahim's vertical strike with a horizontal one. The impact reverberated throughout the blade, he grunted, stumbling back a few feet to recover, but Ghirahim wouldn't let him. He cried out as he felt another gash open up on the skin of his stomach, not deep enough to be fatal but at the rate he was losing blood… it definitely could turn out to be.

Several times he had tried to make a run for the door, if he could just make it to the bird statue outside… he wasn't exactly thinking it through, what if it didn't send him back to the sky? What if something went wrong?

Then again, ones thought process is a little less than coherent when you've got a blood crazy demon lord mercilessly beating the life out of you.

It didn't matter anyways, each time he'd tried, Ghirahim would move to block his path and knock him back.

Two more gashes joined the ranks, one on his arm and the other on his side. Trying to ignore how badly it hurt, he swung his sword, but he was so exhausted that even if it had hit if probably would have caused minimal damage. He barely had the energy to stand much less land a blow.

Ghirahim danced backwards and away from him, surveying the damage he had caused to the young hero. Link teetered on his feet slightly, but out of sheer willpower alone, remained standing. Several new lacerations riddled his upper body, cutting into previous wounds and bleeding profusely. The demon lord had to admit… the sky child did look rather appealing in red.

He flicked his tongue out to catch a few drops of the human's glorious lifeblood that fell off the edge of his own sword. The metallic taste laced with desperation and adrenaline – all of it belonging to Link. He _loved _it.

Again he dashed forwards, slicing and stabbing. He deepened the previous wounds that were drawn across the boy's skin like deadly art. The child's attempts to block the assault were weakening with each passing minute; he was becoming more and more unresponsive. Soon he was nothing but a standing target – though not standing for long.

The tip of the Master Sword scraped against the tile, before falling from his hand. Soon after, his knees buckled, sinking to the floor with the rest of his body soon following, finally succumbing to gravity and numerous injuries. He did not move.

Through his dimming vision, he could still see the other approach. He closed his eyes – willing him to go away…

Of course Ghirahim did no such thing.

He felt a sharp tug at his hair as his head was pulled up off the ground slightly, he grunted, clenching his teeth at the pain he was in. The demon lord got down close to his face.

"You see? Even with your sword you still have no chance of escape… if you had the capacity to, you would have done so already." He murmured, Link didn't make any sort of retort, just stared blankly ahead. Ghirahim shook him a bit to get his full attention.

"I've given you two days of my time and while it has been fun playing these little games with you, I believe it's time to take more… drastic measures." He gave the young hero a few moments to process that, before continuing, tightening his grip on the sandy blonde hair gripped in his hand, "But know this, I am not finished with you. You are_ mine_ to toy with and once I grow bored of you, I will discard you like the worthless piece of human _filth_ you are."

His lips brushed the hero's ear as he spoke in a hushed voice, "Understand me?"

Even in his position, Link managed to give a small nod. Ghirahim released his hold, letting the young hero's head fall back to the floor. The Master Sword lay nearby, he glanced to it before looking back at Link. He nudged Link's hands so that they were out in front of him, overlaying each other, then he picked up the sword.

"See what has become of your Master now…" he muttered to it, the sword flashed blue in response, trying to contact him. He didn't give Fi the chance, plunging the blade downwards and through Link's hands, skewering them to the floor with his own blade.

An ear-splitting scream filled the chamber, the sound sending a pleasant shiver up the demon lord's spin – he was _never_ going to tire of that. Feeling decidedly in a better mood, he stood to leave.

"I'll tell the people of Skyloft you send your best regards." He gave a wink, punctuating the end of his sentence with a snap of the fingers, and then he was gone. Link was left alone with those dreaded words ringing in his ears.


	5. Chapter 5 Attack

"_Master Link…"_ a soft voice spoke, _"if you can hear me… please respond."_

His eyes were hardly open, not seeing anything – he had blacked out from the shock.

Fi materialized out of the glowing hilt of the Master Sword to kneel down in front of its wielder, her normally neutral face occupied with a semi-sad expression. It was clear that whatever methods of interrogation Ghirahim had used had taken _some _effect, both physically and psychologically. Having had no contact with Link – or the demon lord for that matter – for over forty eight hours, she had no information on what said methods were. She didn't know what to expect and she couldn't help or support her master in any way.

"_Master Link…" _

This was, to put it bluntly, _very_ bad.

She speculated that if things kept going the way they were going, Ghirahim eventually_ would_ get what he was after.

The sword spirit raised her blank blue eyes to the ancient carvings located high up on the wall of the chamber. They were drawings of the last two existing Gates of Time – well,_ one_ of them still existed – located in the Faron Woods and Lanayru Desert. The remaining one was what Ghirahim sought to reach.

The question was: how long would it take him to find it?

For perhaps the first time in her existence, Fi took an analysis of the situation and regarded the results _hoping_ that her predictions were not accurate.

She lowered her gaze back down to her master's unconscious form, still impaled to the floor by the sacred blade – technically he had the sword in his possession… but was unable to utilize it. And it was unfortunate that she did not have the ability to remove the blade herself.

'_Why, Goddess, did you insist on placing such restrictions on me?'_

That question was entirely redundant, she already knew the answer.

But that did not change the fact that Link required help. Considering the data obtained from her master's current condition and the circumstances, the chances that he could escape without external help were extremely low. She raised an invisible arm, resting it lightly on Link's back in what humans would classify as a 'sympathetic gesture.' Her ability to interact with physical objects was limited so he probably would not feel this even if he were conscious, she closed her eyes briefly.

For the time being, what would be the most productive course of action to take…?

Skyloft was in real danger now, no question about that, Ghirahim was most likely aiming to cause devastating emotional damage to Link by attacking his hometown… but what could she do to stop it?

She wracked her data base, coming up with only one possible solution, the only thing she really _could_ do at the moment.

Opening her eyes, the sword spirit raised her head up to the ceiling, blinking as a bright blue flash sparked near her temple…

* * *

><p>It appeared that that robot wasn't so insane after all.<p>

Karane drew her sword across the maw of another one of the red goblins that had come out of nowhere, sending it backwards as it let out a shriek. Two more approached her, large machetes drawn and hungry snarls on their faces. She threw them a glare, bringing her sword around to slice at them and making quick work of them.

No one had expected this. These_ things_ just started appearing out of thin air, so many of them, all at once. It was like they'd been there already but no one had noticed.

This was a just few minutes after that carrier robot – Scrapper as he was known as – began suddenly going around town broadcasting about an 'attack' that was soon to come. Of course people just assumed it was malfunctioning, it was just a beat-up old robot after all, it couldn't possibly be telling the truth... right?

Wrong. That was the only warning they got before everything dissolved into confusion and panic, they had been completely unprepared. How _could_ they prepare for something like this?

"Run!" Karane shouted to some of the younger Skyloftians behind her, they obeyed. The knights were doing their best to round up everyone and bring them to the Goddess Statue as it would be easier to defend them from there. And they needed all of the help they could get, there were so many monsters. The human to monster ratio greatly contrasted, for every bokoblin she struck down, three more took its place.

_Where did they keep coming from?_

"Karane!" Someone shouted above her. She looked up to see Pipit drop down from his Loftwing and land beside her. He drew his sword as well, turning to face the new wave of oncoming demons.

"How are you holding up?" he asked.

"I'm fine," she replied, "let's just get rid of these things!"

She struck out at the nearest one, Pipit followed suit and together they were able to drive the monsters back down the path and away from the academy. The sounds of battle raged nearby, cries and shouts echoing through the air as the knights of Skyloft fought back against the onslaught. The bokoblins weren't necessarily _hard _to kill, but there was so many that Skyloft's populace found itself being quickly overwhelmed.

Suddenly, Karane's sword met a red demon that _didn't _try to block or dodge her attacks. It held something circular and blue in its hand… she caught the triumphant look in its beady eyes before her own widened slightly.

_**BOOM!**_

The cluster of bokoblins, Pipit and Karane flew apart, all having been caught by the small explosion.

Karane was thrown onto her back and pain washed over her, ears ringing from having caught the blast at near point-blank range. Faintly she heard someone calling her name and opened her eyes to see blue ones staring back at her with concern. The shrieks had died down; the other bokoblins having been momentarily taken care of by their own bomb.

"Are you alright?" Her friend asked.

"Ugh…" she groaned, raising a hand to her forehead, "feels like I just took a sledge hammer to the head…"

Similar explosions sounded nearby, what were the invaders trying to do? Blast the island out of the sky?

That could very well be their intention.

"Come on, let's get you up," Pipit said, curling an arm around her shoulders and helping her to her feet carefully, "can you walk?"

"Yeah… I think so." She nodded, still a little disoriented. Shaking her head slightly to clear the dizziness, she glanced up and narrowed her eyes slightly. It had been broad daylight not ten minutes ago, yet everything appeared to darken to a sickly grey though the sun was still high up in the middle of the sky… how was that even possible?

They both covered their faces as bright orange flared to their left, followed shortly by the acrid scent of smoke and flame – the bazaar had been set ablaze. The two seniors could only gape in shock and alarm, unable to comprehend what was taking place on their very home, until Pipit snapped out of it.

"Let's go check if there's anyone else around town," he said, starting down the path and heading to the plaza, "we need to get everyone to the statue and out of harm's way!"

"Right." Karane affirmed, following his lead.

More bokoblins were appearing left and right, they fought their way through the ranks of the red demons as they made their way to the plaza. It was absolute chaos, knights were scattered around the island battling against the monsters while some flew above on their Loftwings, trying to get the drop on the invaders. Smoke mingled with the air as the fire grew rapidly, explosions rocked the floating earth as several more bombs were set off, contributing to smaller blazes around the town.

It was clear that they were quickly losing.

An arrow flew from the masses of red, burying itself in the feathers of a soaring Loftwing high above. A screech escaped its massive beak before it dropped like a stone, plummeting towards the ground. Karane and Pipit could only watch in horror as the rider was thrown off sideways, both bird and rider impacting hard against the unyielding stone floor.

And neither moved.

Karane raised a hand to her mouth in stunned silence while Pipit grimaced and looked away.

"Is… is this really happening?" She whispered, shocked at having just witnessed their comrade die before them.

"It is." Pipit said solemnly, shaking his head slightly.

Another shrill cry brought their attention behind them, where bokoblins were beginning to gather and approach with hate in their eyes.

"Ignore them, let's move!" Pipit grabbed her hand and pulled her with him, cutting across the edge of the plaza where all of the carnage was taking place. They headed for the bridge, slicing and stabbing any stray ugly dwarfs they went. Civilians were already fleeing towards the Goddess Statue as they should be doing.

The duo crossed the bridge over the river that ran through town, dividing off a section of it where most of the houses were kept. It looked like everyone had evacuated the area already but you could never be too sure.

"Split up," Karane said, "I'll take this half you take the upper half." Pipit gave her a small salute and headed up the small slope while she went towards the graveyard. Two bokoblins spotted her and charged. With a battle cry full of fury she lunged at them, swinging her sword in a downward slice and bringing it on top of one of their heads, before quickly turning and slashing the other one before they could block with the weapon they held. They were down in no time.

Suddenly snapped her gaze around, a flash of white was all she caught.

'_Huh?'_ She could have sworn that she just saw… something standing there.

No time to worry about it now, she continued, taking quick looks inside houses along the way but finding no one. Finally she headed down the path towards the graveyard. A soft rustling to the side grabbed her attention, she turned to see a little girl pull her knees tighter to herself and try to scoot further back into the bushes. Karane knelt down in front of the makeshift hiding place and reached a hand out with a sympathetic expression.

"Kukiel, it's okay, you'll be alright. Come with me." She wasn't exactly sure if she believed her own words.

"D-demon…" Kukiel hugged herself tighter and didn't budge.

"Yes they're everywhere, I know," Karane sighed, "now take my hand, we have to get…" she trailed off as she suddenly felt a presence looming behind her. The little girl she was trying to coax out of hiding raised her own hand slowly, pointing it over Karane's shoulder.

"She was talking about me."

Karane barely had time to gasp as the scruff of her tunic was roughly grabbed and the next thing she knew, her back had slammed against one of the many tombstones occupying the graveyard. She grunted as her already aching head cracked against the rock. Blinking several times, she tried to bring her vision back into focus. What she could make out was two figures clad in red and white. She shook her head slightly, never mind, there was only one and it appeared that Kukiel had chosen wisely to run off.

He wasn't looking at her, he had his head turned to the main part of the island, where most of the action was taking place. Smoke was rising in large columns, choking the air with its pungent smell.

"I was expecting more of a challenge out of this place," he spoke in a haughty voice, regarding the damage with something akin to disgust, then he shrugged, "well… actually I wasn't, but oh well."

Karane wasn't sure what to think. This one looked different from the others… it made her incredibly uneasy, he seemed… dangerous.

"Who are you?" She said, narrowing her eyes at the demon. He turned to completely face her, dark eyes fixing her with a look of contempt as if deciding if she was worth answering or not.

"If you must know, my name is Ghirahim and you will do well to remember it," Ghirahim said before gesturing to the island around them with a sweep of the arm, "not that introductions will matter in a while, this pathetic island will be reduced to mere ashes on rock in no time."

"So then _you're_ the one leading this attack, huh?" Karane bristled, feeling a sudden rush of anger course through her. The demon let out a sigh and rolled his eyes towards the senior as if to say _"duh."_

"Then why bother if we're so 'pathetic'?" She growled. These were innocent people getting hurt and killed! And for _what? _Was this just some twisted form of _fun?_

"I have my reasons." He answered simply.

"We've never done anything to you so what 'reasons' could you _possibly _have?" She yelled, absolutely furious at whoever this Ghirahim person was,_ if_ he was even a person. Karane pushed herself up, practice sword still gripped tightly in her hand as she faced him. He merely gave her a bored look.

"You ask far too many questions, girl." He snapped his fingers.

Karane's expression shifted to shock as an onyx sabre materialized right before her eyes, "I wouldn't suspect someone as simple minded as you to understand. Now…"

"Karane, move!"

Both Karane and Ghirahim turned to look upwards right as a small object rolled between them. Thinking quickly and taking advantage at the temporary distraction, Karane turned and bolted back the way she had come. A bright flash filled the area followed by a cloud of smoke, she could hear the demon's audible snarl of annoyance behind her but she didn't stop to see if he was in pursuit.

Soon she met up with Pipit, who had thrown the bomb and allowed her a chance of escape.

"Who was _that?"_ he asked as they ran for the bridge.

"No idea," she replied, "but he's responsible for all of this! We need to hurry back to the statue of the Goddess _now."_

Movement in the air up ahead caught their attention – tiny flashes of colour and shapes. They skidded to a stop, Pipit narrowed his eyes, "What is – ?"

And then _he_ was directly in front of them, dark sword raised above his head.

Karane felt herself being roughly shoved backwards. She didn't see the swing until a spray of blood arched against the ground, realizing with horror that that could have been_ her _blood.

Oh no…

Her eyes widened as she watched her friend sway on his feet.

"_PIPIT!"_

* * *

><p>Ghirahim closed in on the two senior students, taking deliberate slow strides towards them until they were standing dangerously close to the edge of the diving platform. Well, one of them was still standing anyway.<p>

The girl had her friend leaning on her shoulder for support, his side was bleeding heavily, staining his yellow tunic a deep red. He wouldn't be alive for very much longer.

The demon lord narrowed his eyes at the two, seeing the dilemma the girl now faced. Sure, she could turn around jump off of the platform, but he seriously doubted that she could mount her bird while carrying the weight of another person. So it was either risk falling to hers and her friends' death or face the inviting edge of his blade. Ha! These situations were always so fun to watch, it was amusing to see humans make such impossible decisions.

Karane – he believed her name was – glanced from the ledge to him and back to the ledge as she backed up.

"There's no way you can make that jump, girl," he said, approaching with a smirk, "it would be foolish to even try."

But she'd already made her choice.

"Wanna bet?"

Wrapping her arm around her friend's shoulders and hugging him tightly, the girl dove off the platform and into the sky.

Ghirahim blinked, a little surprised she had actually done it. He stepped right up to the edge and peered over, feeling a slight twinge of annoyance. That was odd… he didn't see them anywhere. He squinted, searching the clouds for any signs of the two Skyloftians. Finally he shrugged and turned away from the platform, two little sky brats were hardly anything to fret about, especially when one was gravely injured.

Better to focus on the task at hand, the island was already in ruins, his hordes having completely overrun the place. It would be taken care of in no time. Okay… so there wasn't much to do except watch as the remaining defences these people had to offer crumbled.

Hmph, this little town was pathetic… hardly worth _his_ attention if it couldn't even withstand a few bokoblins.

He still couldn't help but smile, thinking of what Link's reaction to all of this would be. Oh! He could just imagine the horror struck expression bloom in those pretty blue eyes of his as he watched Skyloft fall, helpless to do anything… why hadn't he brought him exactly?

Oh right, because he was quite possibly bleeding out on the floor with a sword stuck in his hands.

An object lying on the ground in front of him caught his attention, he picked it up. Yes, this would do nicely…

He grinned again – a souvenir for the boy, how lovely. Sending the object into hammer space for the time being, he turned his gaze in the direction of the red column of light that led to the Eldin Province. The entrance through the clouds was blocked off, not of his doing, it was of mere luck that the volcano had started to erupt right as the boy had dropped down for a little visit. The ash cloud hadn't receded since then, not that it really mattered – the sky child wasn't leaving anytime soon, whether the skies were clear or not.

Hm… but Link _had_ lost a lot of blood from their last little session… perhaps it would be best to go back and confirm that he wasn't dead.

But not before giving Skyloft a parting gift, he wanted to make sure that the place really _would _be reduced to nothing but ashes on rock when he returned.

He raised a hand above his head, snapping his fingers for his diamonds to take him away from the raging panic outside. The environment rematerialized, shifting from that of a burning town to that of the inside of a cave. The soft, rushing sound of a nearby waterfall could be heard – he was still on the island, just at a different location.

His eyes swept the dank cavern – this spot would do fine.

He raised the onyx sword briefly before stabbing down and driving the blade into the ground. Purple light flared as four straight lines branched out along the stone, and then another four lines linked the first four together in a glowing diamond symbol.

Simple summoning magic – it would keep the knights of Skyloft busy for sure…

Ghirahim stepped back, a single resonating snap echoing throughout the cave before he was gone again.

* * *

><p>The sudden feeling of another presence entering the room brought Fi's attention back over to the double doors. Varicoloured diamond shards signalled the unmistakable entrance of a certain demon lord. Who<em> else<em> could it be?

She regarded Ghirahim with that of a blank face as he strode forwards and across the room, towards her and Link. The sword spirit rose to her full height, putting herself between the demon and her master. Ghirahim stopped, tilting his head and lowering his eyelids as if to say 'are you kidding me?'

"Stand aside," He said, not in the mood for any petty resistance. As hard as she tried, the sword spirit could not protect her master from him, not _directly_ at least.

Several ruby daggers appeared at Ghirahim's sides, with a flick of the wrist he sent all of them flying at her. Fi's form wavered for a brief moment, and then the daggers were on the _other _side of her, having passed right through as if she were made of air. Ghirahim wasn't all that surprised, having half expected that to happen. He let his arm drop, giving her an irritated look, which she returned.

"_Harming me through physical means is not possible; it would be futile to even try."_ Fi stated matter-of-factly. Oh, he'd definitely find a way to destroy this wretched, smart-mouthed sword if he couldn't hurt her physically…

"So it seems, but you can't harm_ me_ either," he drawled, before his eyes settled on the inert Link, "and there is someone whom I_ can_ deal damage to..."

"_Do so anymore and he will die, my analysis shows that that is not your immediate goal."_

"Are you being deliberately annoying, or is it just accidental?"

"_To be blunt, deliberately."_ That got a dry chuckle out of him – he shook his head, genuinely amused by the sword spirit's words.

"You're wasting my time, sword spirit…" he abruptly stopped laughing, tone becoming serious again, "the longer he lies there, the closer he is brought to death. I don't think your Goddess would want that now, would she?" He snapped his fingers and a tiny glowing sprite appeared, seizing it by the wings before it could fly to aid Link.

"I wasn't planning on injuring him further at the moment anyways. Now move." Seeing little point in doing otherwise, Fi reluctantly spiraled back into her vessel and disappeared.

'_About time…'_ Ghirahim thought as he rolled his eyes and stepped towards the boy. With his free hand he grasped the handle of the Master Sword still stuck in the child's hands and still buried in the floor. He gave a sharp tug, the steel sliding out of Link's hands with a sickening, wet squelching noise. A grimace twisted the face of the teen as the sword was roughly removed. He pushed the hero onto his back as his grip on the fairy's wings loosened and it zipped forwards, spreading its healing magic with haste. Ghirahim did nothing to stop it from healing Link completely this time.

As the fairy worked, the young hero's expression gradually shifted from one of extreme discomfort to one of wan relief, and then it flitted away, leaving him alone with the demon lord. Ghirahim crouched down next to Link's unconscious form. The hero didn't stir, his upper body was covered in numerous scars and both dried and fresh blood. Hm… fairy magic could only go so far.

Fairies could remedy nearly every injury known to man, such as mending broken bones and sealing the deepest gashes shut…

But they couldn't replace blood, nor cure a simple fever, or dehydration, or anything along those lines. And the sky child looked awfully pale…

Ghirahim clicked his tongue. Shame, he wanted to have a bit more fun but it appeared that anymore physical damage caused would certainly kill the boy… and he couldn't have that now, could he? He wasn't finished yet, nowhere near finished.

Link's resolve still wasn't broken yet, and he wouldn't stop until it was _shattered_ to _pieces._

And again, when he wanted something, he was _dead set_ on obtaining it.

The demon lord deposited the Master Sword back to its temporary place, somewhat surprised at Fi's silence. He'd expected her to say something more – possibly to annoy him – but she hadn't. Then again, he wasn't complaining. Now, onto the task at hand…

He slid an arm under the boy's shoulders and knees, rising with Link held in his arms – it was quite the odd picture. Rolling his eyes upwards, he sighed in exasperation, "Sky child, you are _way _more trouble than what you are worth."

Still, he couldn't help but smirk in amusement as he shifted his hold slightly, preparing to call his diamonds again. The _click_ of Ghirahim's fingers echoed around the chamber briefly before the two presences faded from the room.

Soon after, the Master Sword's hilt began to glow…

* * *

><p><em>Link's mind was far away, disconnected from his body and deep in dreamland where everything was fine. Zelda was home, there were no missions, no torment, no trouble…<em>

_He soared above the clouds on his crimson Loftwing, it was noon and the sun was high overhead, bathing him in its gracious warmth. The wind rushed through his hair and caressed his face – a feeling he loved. Out here he was free and without a care in the world._

_Faintly he heard someone calling his name and his attention was drawn to the right._

_Zelda smiled warmly at him, flying alongside on her own Loftwing. He felt himself smiling as well at his childhood friend. She was wearing the same magenta dress as the one she wore on the Wing Ceremony. In fact, she looked exactly the same as she did on that day… that day when she…_

_All thoughts were forgotten as the blue Loftwing suddenly beat its wings faster, Zelda grinned at him in challenge as she flew by and sped up ahead. He pushed his own bird to catch up, slightly surprised, but soon he flew alongside her again. She beamed at him and giggled, so this was a race, was it? He couldn't help but laugh himself; this was the most fun he'd had in a long time!_

_He let himself indulge in fantasy, vaguely he was aware of a little voice that told him he would eventually have to wake up, but he ignored it. Why not pretend that this was real? If only for a little while…_

_When he turned his head to look back at Zelda again, he found she wasn't smiling this time. Instead, she was staring at him, frowning. Her blue eyes filled with sadness._

_"Link, we have to go back." She mouthed, he couldn't hear her voice – no sound had come out but he still understood what she'd said._

_"Why?" He tried to reply but he couldn't speak, his voice had gone silent as well. Actually everything had gone silent._

_"Link, we have to go back!" Now he heard her, loud and clear in his mind, her tone filled with frightening urgency._

_And then he saw it – Skyloft was burning, smoke rising through the air and darkening the sky. He cried out in surprise as Zelda dove towards the island, heedless of the danger it purposed. Without thinking twice he flew after her and landed in the midst of it all. Oddly enough, no one was around, yet he could hear the terrified and pain filled screams of the Skyloftians that lived here._

_"Zelda!" He called, searching frantically for her, "Zelda!"_

_The air had somehow gotten so thick that he found it hard to breath, much less see. Covering his mouth and nose with the inner side of his elbow, he ran blindly. His eyes stung and his throat felt like it had been scorched itself – was this part of the dream? It felt too real._

_Somehow he ended up at the front of the Goddess Statue; the haze had parted enough that he could see someone up ahead. It was Zelda, standing with her back to him, now clad in the same ivory coloured dress she'd worn when he'd last seen her. She looked so out of place, with the destruction around her greatly contrasting the almost blindingly white, pristine condition of her attire._

_She turned to him slowly; her face was blank, indifferent to what was going on around her._

_And it absolutely terrified him._

_It was a trick, that couldn't be Zelda. He took a step back, then another, not taking his eyes off of her._

_The screaming was getting so loud, so deafening that his ears rang. He covered them and fell to his knees, clenching his eyes shut and uselessly trying to block out the noise of the townspeople. But it was already in his head and he couldn't do anything to silence it._

_He could feel the heat intensify as well, the fire was dangerously close to his heels, yet couldn't move from his position; he was completely paralyzed… paralyzed and unable to do anything about it._

_The flames engulfed him, spreading across his body to greedily eat away at his skin. It was too real, and he felt it all._

_Wordlessly, he opened his mouth to join his voice with the others… the others that were burning… the others that were dying…_

A sinister laugh echoed around him and he was roughly dragged back into consciousness, senses utterly disoriented, his heart pounding. For a moment everything was just a jumbled mess of the confusion that comes with waking up, he didn't know what was real and what wasn't. Had he imagined that laugh? Where was Zelda? Where was _he?_

_Was he dead?_

He half hoped that last one was true.

But no, he _could _feel his body, and it felt like it weighed a _ton_, like his muscles were anchored to the earth beneath him. And how he _hurt,_ for an instant he actually thought that he might have gotten burned alive, but that was impossible considering he was still breathing. As he calmed himself, gradually, the effects of the nightmare wore off and reality took over.

It wasn't much better… he felt so utterly _weak._ To his dismay, his stomach was practically screaming for sustenance, when was the last time he had eaten or drank anything? He couldn't remember…

Biting the inside of his cheek he decided that he didn't even want to think about that right now.

His throat felt the worst, raw, dry, and burning like hellfire had just ripped through it – most likely the cause being a combination of screaming his lungs out and dehydration. Not one drop of moisture remained in his mouth. He tried not to let that fact cross his mind, but the harder he tried, the more he thought about it. He found that it was difficult focusing on anything else; he needed food, water, _something._

With extreme difficulty, he pushed open his eyelids halfway, seeing nothing but blurry shapes and colours he immediately let them fall closed again. The stone of the wall was cool against his back and the air was considerably less dry… which didn't make a lot of sense considering that he was being held captive at a _volcano._

Footsteps echoed off the walls of the room that he was now being held in. On instinct, he tensed and didn't move a muscle – not that he possessed the strength to.

Oh Goddess… those footsteps were coming closer. Please leave, please leave. Then they stopped, a shadow fell over where the young hero was lying against the wall, feigning sleep.

Or playing dead.

A hand gently – almost lovingly – stroked his face and he flinched, ruining whatever illusion the boy was going for.

"Rise and shine, _Link," _that same despised voice practically sang, "I know you're awake so it's no use pretending not to be!"

Link grimaced, trying to turn his head to the side, willing _him_ to just back off. He was sick of this… being used like some chew toy.

"Aww… poor boy," the demon lord said with mock sympathy, brushing the hair out of the hero's face, "I've been thinking that perhaps I have been rather hard on you lately…"

Link's eyes slowly fluttered open, shooting the demon a tired glare,_ if_ it could even be called that. He saw those pale white lips curve up in satisfaction at the exhaustion the other was feeling, that fighting spirit was diminishing… little by little.

And Link knew it as well.

"Oh don't give me that look!"

A snap of the fingers.

And the hero's eyes widened. That pronounced _click _could only mean one thing.

More pain.

At once he cringed away, reacting on reflex and instinct, doing his best to press himself further back into the wall he leaned against. He was going to be hurt again. Clenching his eyes shut he braced himself for the imminent suffering that was about to be brought upon him.

No more… he didn't want anymore… he couldn't take it…

There was a pause – a horrible drawn out pause.

Then Ghirahim threw his head back and laughed.

Nothing happened; Link tentatively opened his eyes after a few moments. The demon lord was chuckling as if he found something incredibly amusing. Why? What was _so _funny?

He gritted his teeth, frustrated far beyond the point of sanity. Why wouldn't Ghirahim just get the damn punishment over with already?

It was at that point he saw that the demon lord did not have a sword in his grasp, nor a dagger, whip or anything of the sort. No, what he held in his hand was what looked like a crystal _goblet_ of all things. He must have looked pretty confused right then.

"Relax, I'm not going to hurt you… well, at least not _now _anyways. However I'll have no choice to if you refuse to cooperate," he held up the clear chalice in front of the boy's face, the unmistakable sloshing sound of liquid inside could be heard, "but I doubt that you will…"

Water. It was water.

Link's throat suddenly seemed to grow ten times drier as his eyes fixated on the glass. He swallowed uncomfortably, this had to be a trick… there was no way that he was just being offered _water_ after all of this. It was poisoned, it had to be. He narrowed his eyes suspiciously at it, before forcing himself to look away and trying not to think about how _any _liquid would sooth his agonizing thirst at the moment...

As if Ghirahim had read his mind, he suddenly sighed in mild irritation, "It's water, _only_ water, you have my word that it's not poisoned."

The edge of the goblet was pushed towards Link's mouth. Using all of his self-control, he stubbornly turned his head away from it. He didn't care if the lack of hydration killed him, he was not accepting _anything_ from his enemy, especially if it was _force fed_ to him.

But Ghirahim was in no mood for this. Roughly seizing the boy's jaw, he forced him to look forward again and brought the rim of the container to his lips.

"Drink." He said sternly.

This time Link just refused to open his mouth at all, pressing his lips together in a tight line. This got a roll of the eyes from the demon lord, who merely reached up and pinched the boy's nose to cut off his air. Link realized he'd lost; soon, the urge to breathe became too great. With a frown, he reluctantly opened his mouth.

Ghirahim smirked and tilted the goblet, the hero's throat clenching automatically around the welcomed rush of cold liquid. His eyes slowly closed, after days without water – or food for that matter – he didn't realize how badly his body needed it until now. He drank deeply and tilted his head back, suddenly finding it incredibly easy to ignore the fact that his worst enemy was watching him with growing amusement. For the moment he didn't care, all he knew was that his thirst was blissfully depleting and bringing him the utmost relief…

And then, far too soon, the chalice was pulled away and he let out a poorly contained whine that he immediately regretted.

"Parched, are we?" Ghirahim taunted. Oh this was far too entertaining… he was originally just going to give the boy all of the water, but if he had been so resistant before, then why not make him work for it?

He grinned, liking that idea very much.

It appeared that Link had regained a small fraction of his strength; he opened his mouth to speak, though it was in a raspy, barely audible voice, "I… hate you… you bastard."

It was evident that he still wanted and _needed _more water, but the fool was trying not to show it. Ghirahim sighed, not the least bit surprised by the boy's typical hard-headedness.

"You are free to hate me, I prefer it actually. But name calling… now that just hurts my feelings." Those weren't the only things Link wanted to hurt…

"I would _love_ to give the rest of this to you," he continued, shaking the chalice a bit and watching the boy shift in discomfort. The demon lord had just invented a new kind of torture… "…but I'm not sure if you need it considering you've summoned the strength to throw meager insults…"

Then he stood from his previously crouched position to leave, taking the water with him and turning his back on the young hero.

He didn't see the look of distress flash through those blue eyes but he could practically _feel _the desperation rolling off of the other, and he knew he was getting to him.

"Wait." It was so quiet, barely a whisper, spoken before the boy had a chance to stop himself.

Ghirahim stopped; he'd heard it loud and clear.

Link bit his lip, looking away, "Please…"

"Please…?"

This was way too amusing.

"Please… give me the rest of the water." He clenched his eyes shut, unable to believe what he was saying.

The demon lord turned back with an infuriatingly smug look, "Forgetting something…?"

Link gave him an incredulous look, "What more do you _want?" _

Ghirahim turned to leave again.

Desperation got to the young hero, he dropped his head, defeated and unable to believe what he was about to say.

"Please, _Lord Ghirahim."_

A few moments of silence passed, letting the horrible realization sink in that Link was actually _begging_ his enemy once again… and he was unable to stop himself. He knew how badly he needed the water, he could hardly move… how _weak_ he was.

This was exactly what that bastard wanted… the submission of his pride.

He didn't look up when the sound of footsteps once again signaled the approach of the demon lord. He didn't look up when the demon lord knelt down in front of him once again. And he most definitely didn't look up to see the triumphant smirk adorned on the other's face.

Then he felt his chin caught between the demon's thumb and forefinger and he was forced to tilt his head up, locking his gaze with those dark eyes devoid of any humanity.

"That's a good sky child…" Ghirahim spoke softly, lightly tracing the hero's parted, cracked lips with the tip of his finger, "you see how much easier it is to just cooperate?"

Once again, the chalice was brought to Link's mouth and he was allowed to sip. Slowly he was fed the entire container of water, and as his thirst decreased, the mortification he felt from the whole situation increased. Physically, he felt better but Ghirahim had left his mark on the mind of the young hero, and he wasn't going to forget this _anytime_ soon. How humiliating it all was.

He finished off the liquid, breathing heavily. Ghirahim made the container disappear and stood up, chuckling a bit to himself.

The urge to strangle the demon was almost overpowering.

He ground his teeth together in frustration, he wanted to scream, attack, throw a punch, _something –_ his limbs weren't tied so it was certainly possible, but he knew that it wouldn't get him anywhere. The demon lord was in complete control and had been from the moment he'd gotten captured.

Goddess, he hated how helpless he was!

"Oh by the way, about that little town of yours…"

Those works struck Link dumb.

_Oh no…_

How could he have forgotten…? Had Ghirahim actually…?

The demon lord laughed, watching the hero's expression, full of vexation and hate, shatter like he'd just been hit with a bombshell. Link's eyes widened, uncomprehending and disbelieving, he glanced up at Ghirahim as if he was searching for some sign that the demon was bluffing.

"You doubt that I would actually go through with destroying that pathetic floating village?"

Something was tossed to his lap. He looked down and recognized the object instantly, horror washing over him as he realized what it was.

It was a familiar looking, bloodied yellow hat.

* * *

><p>Pipit grimaced as he swallowed the remainder of the red potion, cringing at the bitter taste. Karane helped him sit up slowly, the effects of the potion still working its magic on the deep gash in his side, no longer oozing blood.<p>

"Take it easy…" she advised, not wanting her friend to push himself so early after recovering from that harsh stab wound.

Somehow they'd made it to the Goddess Statue where inside, the citizens took shelter from the attack and other injured knights were being tended to. The two senior students were among them.

After Karane had jumped off of the diving platform, she'd miraculously managed to call her Loftwing and mount it _while_ carrying the weight of another person. This was both a dangerous and downright stupid thing to do but that hardly mattered when her friend had been _dying._ Instead of flying outward and away from the island she cut directly under it, it had been the quickest way to reach the Goddess Statue.

"I'll be fine…" Pipit insisted with some strain in his voice, "Where did that… weird guy run off to?"

He meant the demon from before. She shuddered, whatever he was… he'd severely creeped her out.

"I'm not sure…" and she hadn't stuck around to find out. They had both nearly been killed!

"For all we know, he could still be on the island."

Karane looked thoughtful, "Maybe that's why all those monsters keep appearing…"

"You've noticed it too?" Pipit managed to slowly get to his feet, with some help from his friend.

"Yeah, I mean there's no way that there could have been this many to start off with, they have to keep spawning from somewhere…"

"That demon guy seemed like their leader, he's most likely making them appear." Pipit said, "But what can we do to stop him?"

Unfortunately, neither had the answer to that, he had been too strong for both of them to handle.

"Pipit, Karane," the two students looked over to see Instructor Owlan coming towards them. He beckoned them to follow him, "come with me."

They exchanged a glance, but followed as Owlan led them out of the statue to the outside of the small section of the island where the Goddess statue rested. For some reason, the red demons didn't spawn over here…

But the rest of Skyloft was almost completely overrun. They had been forced to destroy the bridge that connected the Goddess Statue to the town, preventing the monsters from crossing over to where the citizens of said town took shelter from the attack. The monsters were still free to roam the town and pillage as they pleased since there was hardly any resistance left to fight. Most of the knights were either exhausted, injured or both.

The three made their way to the courtyard out front, where Headmaster Gaepora stood, along with a familiar looking robot…

"What's going on?" Karane asked, regarding the two with mild confusion. Pipit frowned as well.

The headmaster turned to them, his expression grave.

"Link has been taken captive."


	6. Chapter 6 Wavering

Karane and Pipit only stood in a sort of stunned silence, their mouths opening and closing a few times, not quite knowing what to say. Link…? Captured…?

A dozen questions hit their minds and the next second, they voiced them all at once.

"You say he's been…"

"But how?"

"What happened?"

"Where'd you hear this from?"

"How do you know?"

"Where is…"

The robot floating near Gaepora, Scrapper, quickly grew impatient with them.

"Alright, listen up!" he cut off their questions, silencing them right away, "I bring word of this from Mistress Fi, she is a companion of Master Shortpants, bzzt."

The two senior students exchanged a glance, this time at a loss for words for a completely different reason; they had no idea what the robot was talking about.

"Mistress Fi?" Karane inquired.

"Master… Shortpants?" Pipit said, cocking an eyebrow at the strange machine.

The headmaster cut in, "Ah, he is referring to Link."

"Anyways," Scrapper said rather impatiently, "my Mistress has informed me, via wavelength connection, that she would like me to relay her message to you two! Fzzt. Wait…" he paused, seemingly listening for something unheard, and then he spoke again, "she says that she can hold up a connection, she will talk herself."

Pipit and Karane once again looked at each other, completely puzzled, but they didn't say anything. Both were wondering if the carrier robot had a loose screw. Then, after another moment, a soft voice was heard, seemingly speaking from all around them yet at the same time only heard from the robot itself. For the moment, another presence seemed to be with them.

"_Greetings, Karane, Pipit – these are most definitely odd circumstances to introduce oneself, but as Scrapper has already told you, I am a companion and assistant of Link, my name is Fi. If my information is correct, you are both close friends of my master, so I chose to contact you," _the voice spoke. The two students noted that it definitely sounded female, _"I'll cut right to it, Master Link was captured a few days ago. Contrary to my assumption that he could free himself, he is now in dire need of assistance. I cannot help him myself, but that is irrelevant at the moment."_

As the two students listened to Fi, a bad feeling was starting to build in the pit of Karane's stomach. Link hadn't returned to Skyloft in days… and he hardly stayed on the Surface for more than a day. Yes, they knew that he made frequent trips to the land below to look for clues as to where Zelda was taken, but they didn't know exactly _what_ went on down there. The more she thought about it, the more she realized that there was a high probability that he really could have gotten into some nasty trouble, and that the robot and the strange voice might not be so crazy. Pipit was thinking along the same lines as her.

"What's happened to him now?" she asked, though she wasn't entirely sure if Fi could hear her, it might've been a one-way connection for all she knew.

But never the less, after a few moments Fi responded, _"I'm afraid there is much to explain…"_

"Then just tell us who captured him," Pipit spoke up, "we need to go after him! Where is he being held?"

Fi again took a few moments to reply, _"The one who captured him is a demon that goes by the title, Ghirahim."_

Karane's eyes widened, Fi had just confirmed her suspicions. Then it had to have something to do with the recent attack!

"That guy… that guy we saw before…" she muttered, remembering the white-haired man, or demon, or whatever he was. But what did he want with Link? And why attack such a peaceful island? This didn't make any sense!

"…_As for his current location, he is at the Eldin Volcano,"_ Fi spoke again, then quickly added, _"but I advise you, do not set out right away."_

Pipit, who had turned to leave, stopped and looked back at Scrapper with an annoyed expression, "And give me one good reason why we shouldn't." Irritation was evident in his tone and Karane felt the same way – did she really expect them not to do anything about the situation Link was in? Whatever Ghirahim wanted with him, it couldn't be good.

"_Actually, I can give you three."_ Fi replied calmly, her emotionless and flat tone was kind of annoying, it was as if she didn't care about her supposed companion, _"One, you don't even know where the volcano is."_

She had a point, they also realized that they had no idea what a volcano even _was._ Pipit suddenly looked sheepish.

"_Two, the cloud barrier has been blocked off due to the volcanic eruption that happened earlier. If you tried dropping down to the surface the chances of you perishing from inhaling ash are extremely high. Not to mention numerous other dangers that the volcano proposes."_ Fi droned mechanically, _"Three, those aren't the only threats; rushing into an unfamiliar and hostile environment without a plan or common knowledge is incredibly unwise. I estimate that if you were to leave now, your chances of survival would be fewer than ten percent."_

This only aggravated the two students further – so she told them what had happened to their friend and now she was giving them valid reasons not to go after him?

Pipit narrowed his eyes slightly, "So then what are we supposed to do? Just wait around while our friend could be…"

"_No."_ Fi cut him off, a stern edge hidden within her initial monotone, _"The most productive course of action would be to try and find some way to eradicate the problem facing Skyloft. But for the time being, there is nothing that can be done."_ There was a short pause, _"But I will contact you when the time is right. We'll be in touch."_

The extra presence that seemed to be with them faded. Scrapper looked vaguely disappointed now that his supposed mistress was gone for the time being. Pipit and Karane were simply confused and troubled, they looked to the headmaster, who had simply stood by and listened as Fi had spoken, for some sort of explanation. A lot of their questions were still unanswered, and they were more concerned for their friend than before. What had been going on with Link lately?

"I see there is much to catch up on…" Gaepora began.

* * *

><p>Link could only stare in complete shock at the object he held in his hands, unsure of what to think first.<p>

This… this was Pipit's hat… his friend… there was no mistake. No one else on the island wore the same yellow.

Skyloft… Ghirahim actually went through with… He couldn't wrap his head around it.

With shaking fingers, he turned the fabric over, feeling wetness beginning to seep from the material. Blood, and it was still fresh.

And it was his _friend's _blood.

He flung the hat away like it had stung him, but it was still on his hands, covering his palms in red. The blood was already drying and sticking to his skin. Gripping at his hair, he hung his head as the new barrage of emotions bombarded him.

This couldn't be happening… he refused to believe this was happening. Ghirahim could be lying for all he knew. He had to be lying.

But if he thought about it, what reason exactly would the demon lord have to lie? This was Ghirahim he was dealing with; he'd probably have no qualms about murdering innocent people.

That fact sunk in slowly, excruciatingly. He recalled his dream – visions of Skyloft burning flashed through his mind and he realized that it could be happening right now. His friends… everyone he knew, just gone, all because he wouldn't talk. He wouldn't sell his best friend out, but looking at what that had cost him…

It suddenly got extremely hard to draw breath. He clenched his eyes shut.

Why? Why couldn't he do anything to stop him? What exactly had he been doing while the demon lord was free to waste his town? Bleeding? _Dying?_

Ghirahim merely stood by and watched the scene unfold with growing satisfaction, finally the boy was starting to crumble and lose his composure. He thought he'd drive the nail in a little further…

"Not even a decent fight out of that one…" he said, observing for any sort of reaction from the sky child, "him and his little friend, that other girl, know them?"

Link visibly stiffened, but said nothing, though it told the demon lord enough.

Ghirahim laughed, "Ha! Turns out they'd rather jump to their deaths than face me… Not that I blame them of course," he examined his nails with boredom, "it is the better way to go out." In truth, he actually didn't know if they'd survived the fall or not, but Link didn't know that, did he?

An evil grin spread across his face.

As long as Link thought them to be dead then that was good enough, it didn't matter if they did somehow manage to live through that. Besides, finishing off Skyloft later would be no problem… that is, if his hordes hadn't done so already.

His eyes flickered from the knight uniform cap that had been tossed to the floor, then back to Link, who still hadn't given any verbal response.

Link didn't raise his head, he uselessly tried to block out the words that the other spoke, wishing that he would just be left alone. He didn't want to imagine what had happened to his friends… Pipit, Karane… his hometown… but the images wouldn't stop. And neither would Ghirahim.

He hated being reduced to this! He didn't understand… how was it that he'd managed to beat Ghirahim twice before, yet now it appeared that the demon lord really had complete control over him? The only thing keeping him alive was that small piece of knowledge he possessed; Ghirahim could kill him anytime he wanted to. It was as if he were some… play thing that could be easily disposed of, as the sadist had put it earlier.

That must've been it; Ghirahim was only toying with him the two times he'd battled the demon before, that was the only reason he had managed to best him.

But now his home was being/already destroyed because he wasn't strong enough.

That fact alone sent stabs of anger through his system, the sudden rush made his head spin as the raw current of rage seized his limbs. It spread its fire all the way to the tips of his fingers where his hands were clenched so tightly into fists that his knuckles blanched. He let his arms fall to his sides.

Slowly, very slowly, he lifted his gaze up, opening his eyes into a venomous glare. His piercing blue eyes were fixed on Ghirahim, who merely raised a brow at this. If it was even possible, the young hero's hateful stare intensified.

"Ooh, how I'm shaking!" Ghirahim mocked, sarcasm dripping from every word, "That's quite a nasty look you've got there, sky child, something upsetting you?" He innocently put a finger to his lips and feigned sympathy, Link bared his teeth, snarling in response.

"My, how intimidating," he chuckled, and then took a step towards the boy, "but what can you do besides shoot hateful looks at me?"

He noticed how when he drew closer, the little hero would push backwards as if he were attempting to merge himself with the wall, yet he still glared daggers at the demon lord. That expression was more than hostile, not unlike a cornered, terrified animal, ready to lash out at whatever came near it.

"Oh, that's right…" he continued, stopping a few feet from him. He then looked thoughtful for a moment before leaning down slightly and looking the younger directly in the eye, _"Nothing."_

He saw the wavering look flash across the boy's face before Link and looked away. Ghirahim knew he was getting to him.

"Do you see where defiance gets you?" Link didn't meet his gaze as his enemy spoke to him, just continued to try and burn holes in the opposite wall with his eyes.

"So much bloodshed… all for one girl, she must be very important to you, hm? And I don't just mean in the sense that she's the Goddess's reincarnation, something tells me you don't care about that nearly as much as you care about just bringing your little friend home. But…" hearing Ghirahim stand up straight, he ground his teeth together, still refusing to look at the other, "…with no home to go back to, how is that to be accomplished?"

He was sick of this, sick of the taunting, sick of whatever games he'd been forced to play.

Link dropped his head in what Ghirahim mistook as defeat.

"That's what I thought." A smile graced those pale lips as he said it, it would be so easy now just to break the child while he was so devastated. He drew closer once again.

Through the peripherals of Link's vision he saw the demon lord get down to his level, he didn't look up. If he did, he knew that he would lose it.

But then he saw that gloved hand reaching towards his face again.

Right there, something snapped.

Heedless of whatever was left of the rational voice in his head, he threw himself forwards and knocked the somewhat startled Ghirahim to the floor. Not thinking, only acting, following instinct – and that instinct said that he wanted hurt.

And hurt that was not his own.

This bastard had caused him enough trouble.

Fingers easily finding the pallid skin of the other's neck, he clenched with both hands, gripping the demon lord's throat with all of the force he could muster. The initial shock faded from Ghirahim's eyes, darkening to a deadly calm even as the boy tried to strangle him. Then a cruel smirk spread across his face – amused, he was _amused._ If it was even possible, Link's anger increased threefold and he tightened his grip.

But no, it wasn't enough; Ghirahim hardly felt what pressure the other was trying to apply.

Reaching up slowly, he grasped both wrists belonging to the young hero, and then squeezed.

Pain shot up Link's arm and he visibly winced, the bones in his arm straining against the demon lord's hold.

At once he tried to twist away, but it was like trying to wriggle out of iron shackles; it couldn't be done.

There was a sudden change in gravity, and then he found himself on his back with weight sitting on top of him. His eyes widened before he immediately began to thrash and struggle, which was insanely difficult considering his restricted movement – Ghirahim had both of the young hero's arms pinned to the floor on either side of his head.

He let out an almost feral snarl, desperately trying to break free and land a hit. Punching that infuriatingly smug expression right off of the demon lord's face sounded incredibly appealing right now. Though he saw red, his mind was white with blind fury.

Ghirahim effortlessly straddled his hips, tilting his head to the side in a taunting manner which only fueled Link's rage. Suddenly he grunted and then narrowed his eyes, jolting forward slightly – the boy had managed to kick him in the back of the head with all that flailing… That was really getting irritating.

Releasing one of his hands, Ghirahim pulled his fist back and rained down a nasty blow on the hero's upper abdomen, hearing the satisfying, choked gasp of the younger as the breath was forcefully driven from his lungs. All struggles momentarily ceased.

Link coughed harshly, feeling like he was about to throw up. He was too disoriented to notice the snap of gloved fingers as he tried sucking in air again, but it wouldn't come and he was left gasping in agony, unable to move as he felt chains snake around his wrists and ankles. As the pain in his chest slowly lessened, his panic rose, yet he refused to show it, instead once again narrowing his eyes at the demon sitting on top of him and straining against his bindings.

"Get… off…" He huffed, trying to skewer Ghirahim with his glare.

"Tsk, tsk, you have such a temper, you naughty boy." The demon lord chuckled, before raising his arm out to the side, "And you were being so good before… perhaps you are in need of further punishment?"

Again, he snapped his fingers and a dagger materialized, but Link thought nothing of it – he didn't care; he was far too aggravated to care. He'd like to take that dagger and shove it straight up the demon lord's pompous a–

Suddenly his jaw was grabbed and his head was tilted back, forcing him to look upwards at the stone ceiling. He gritted his teeth, frowning at the bizarre action. Ghirahim's hold was firm, preventing him from twisting his head from side to side. A growing sense of unease was building in his gut, along with unexplainable panic – all he knew that he needed to break free and he needed to do it now.

With a grunt, he attempted to squirm away from the hand holding his jaw in place, but stopped himself short.

The deadly point of the dagger was ominously hovering less than an inch over his left eye.

Link's blood ran ice cold.

The other's implied threat literally hung right over him. He didn't dare move, the breath catching in his throat as he went absolutely rigid. Gradually, his anger ebbed, taking with it the rush of temporary adrenaline and strength it had given him and leaving in its horrible wake fear and weakness that had been long overdue.

A dark smirk crossed Ghirahim's face at seeing those blue eyes widen in apprehension - terror was such a lovely emotion when it came from other people, especially the sky child. Ah, such power he felt with his worst enemy in this wonderful petrified state underneath him. How pathetic Link was! The boy was truly nothing without his sword- that sword was the only reason he'd managed to beat him thus far and without it, the boy was nothing but a frail, weak, human.

Ghirahim leaned forward slightly, speaking in a poisonous tone.

"It's almost pitiful how much you're willing to endure for her. Think about this, what has she done for you in return? Send you on countless tasks? And for what?" He paused, more for dramatic effect, not actually expecting an answer. Then he cocked his head slightly, "That hardly seems like compensation for her Chosen Hero. You've sacrificed your hometown for her already, and now you're seriously prepared to sacrifice your own _eyes?"_

Link's heart pounded wildly in his chest, he could hardly focus on what Ghirahim was saying. Small beads of moisture formed on his forehead as he watched the dagger lower at an agonizingly slow pace. He had the sense to clench his eyes tightly shut, not that it would do anything to stop the demon lord.

_'Just get it over with...'_

In a way though, he knew that Ghirahim's words held some sort of truth to them. For an instant, something flared inside him... something that wasn't _entirely_ directed at his enemy. It was quickly chased away the next second as the point of the dagger was lightly trailed over his eyelid, fear once again taking its place.

"Hm… imagine, the last thing you'd ever see would be my face, permanently embedded into your memory…" that same voice practically purred, casual tone sending shivers up the young hero's spine. "I'm going to ask you something right now, Link. Do you want me to do this to you? Do I really_ have_ to do this to you to get what I want?"

The boy was too stunned to respond it seemed – who in their right mind would want to get their eyes gouged out?

But Ghirahim wouldn't settle for that.

"I asked you a question, I expect an answer." He hissed, leaning over further and narrowing his dark eyes menacingly.

A few seconds ticked by, as the silence stretched on, Ghirahim's impatience grew. Link had his eyes screwed shut, lips pressed firmly together to stop any sort of noise from slipping past them.

But the demon wasn't one for sympathy, nor would he ever be, so Link was given a small but sharp shake.

"Answer me!" Ghirahim growled, "Three simple words, that's all it takes."

Finally Link opened his mouth to speak, though it was in a shaky voice, "N-no..."

"That's one…" the demon lord muttered, idly tracing the skin around the boy's eye with the point of the blade. The pressure put on it was next to nothing but it got the desired reaction. Link squirmed uncomfortably, trying to escape but having nowhere to go. The blood pounded in his ears and his heart felt like it was going to burst from his chance at any given moment.

"Lord... Lord..." he struggled to say.

"Two."

"Gh..." he trailed off into silence, seemingly realizing just what it was that he was saying. The sound of the demon lord clicking his tongue in disapproval was heard.

"I would think that your pride wouldn't matter nearly as much as your eyes." Ghirahim pressed harder, moving the knife down and carving a shallow gash into Link's cheek, "Prove me wrong in the next three seconds, sky child, _I dare you."_

Link winced, grimacing at the sharp sting.

"No... Lord Gh-" he swallowed hard to steady his voice, "Ghirahim."

After a few more painful moments of drawn out silence, the dagger was finally pulled back and Link felt like he was about to pass out.

"That's better." The demon lord said, releasing the boy's jaw before getting down very close to whisper in his ear, "I'm not going to blind you, at least not yet anyways. But don't think you're getting off that easy."

Link tensed when he a slight tug at his remaining Fireshield Earring, bracing himself inwardly for what was sure to come. He gritted his teeth, not quite able to suppress a sharp yelp as searing pain spread throughout the side of his head. He turned his face to the side to see not one, but both earrings that offered him protection from the blazing heat of the volcano, hit the floor several yards away with a few small clinks.

His eyes widened before he immediately began to struggle again, but was stopped short with a harsh slap across the face.

"Oh, do relax," Ghirahim hissed, his was arm still raised, "this room is special from the others…well, at least for the time being it is. In any case, the temperature won't rise until I let it. And if I'd wanted you charred to a crisp, you would be so already."

He was right, the room stayed at the same temperature and Link almost did feel relieved, but then he realized that whatever else the demon planned on doing would most likely be just as bad, if not worse. The dagger that had been previously summoned was still held in Ghirahim's hand. Link didn't take his eyes off of it, even as a familiar purple hue encased it, and then the dark metal suddenly glowed a bright orange.

Before Link's eyes could even widen in shock and trepidation, the flat side of the blade was quickly pressed to his abdomen. Immediately, he strained against his binds, chains rattling as he thrashed and screeched in terrible pain. The skin gave off a faint hissing noise as it burned on contact, and then the dagger was pulled away, leaving the hero panting and groaning softly with each breath.

But that was only a taste of what Ghirahim was planning to inflict on Link.

The demon lord smiled, a miniscule part of the hunger for the sky child's pain had been satisfied.

But he wanted more, _so much more._ Link's anguish was positively addicting.

"Now, I'm going to ask you a few questions…" he spoke slowly, lowering the blazing hot dagger to almost touch the skin of another spot on the hero's chest, "…and you're going to answer them."

* * *

><p>Back inside the Statue of the Goddess, Karane kneeled beside one of her fallen comrades, another knight, and helped him drink from the glass bottle in her hands. The potion supply was dwindling and there was more injured than fighting, so it was better for all the knights to just retreat from the main part of the island for now to recover. They knew that they couldn't remain in the statue forever but there was nowhere else to go for the time being…<p>

But Karane wasn't thinking about that right now, her mind was elsewhere. She pursed her lips together in thought.

She was worried, Gaepora's words from earlier were still clear in her ears. Yes, Link made frequent trips to the surface, but they still couldn't believe that he was part of some great destiny. Why had he never told them? They were friends, right?

She chewed on her bottom lip, this was all too much at the moment. First Skyloft, then finding out that Link had been taken prisoner by that… whatever he was. She didn't even want to think of what could be happening to Link right now. He obviously couldn't be dead, but that could change at any time, and that risk only increased the longer they waited for their opportunity to go after him.

This was frustrating! Why couldn't Fi have just told them where the volcano was? It was nerve racking waiting for her 'go' sign while that bastard was doing Goddess-knows-what to Link. And then there was the issue of Skyloft… the monsters were still running rampant, but what could they do to stop them if they just kept appearing all over the bloody place?

She forced herself to calm down and looked up to see Pipit approaching her. The knight was going to be fine so she stood up and left him to rest.

"Karane, I've been thinking…" Pipit said, "that Ghirahim guy… he couldn't still be on the island."

Her expression darkened at that name. Yet another issue; the possibility that the demon was still lurking somewhere in Skyloft, "How do you know?"

"You saw how he teleported before, if he could jump from location to location like that, then couldn't he simply teleport over here and… kill us all?" her friend leaned in, speaking in a low voice. No point in causing panic among the survivors, not that they would know what the two students were talking about anyways. As far as Pipit and Karane knew, they were the only ones that had actually seen Ghirahim besides Kukiel, who was probably traumatized out of her wits.

"You have a point…" Karane replied, rubbing her jaw in thought, "but then what about the monsters? They're his, aren't they? So then how are they still appearing all over the place?"

"Either he's still on the island but doesn't care enough to pursue us, or…" Pipit trailed off.

"Something has to be making them spawn!" she finished for him, eyes widening in realization. "A spell maybe? He could pull a sword from midair so–"

"Excuse me?" Karane and Pipit both turned to look at the person who'd spoken, the town Fortune Teller, Sparrot, as he sat over at a nearby wall, "I couldn't help but overhear, please pardon my manners but I believe I might be of assistance."

"Um… okay." Karane said skeptically, but the Fortune Teller's predictions were shockingly accurate at times, so it might be a good idea for him to help. She nodded to him, "Well, what did you have in mind?"

He turned his abnormally large eyes downwards at the object resting in his lap – a sphere of glass.

"Ah, let me gaze into my beautiful crystal ball, I may be able to locate what you are searching for…" THEY didn't even know what they were searching for, but if this was the only lead they got, then they'd take it. Sparrot peered intently into the glass sphere, as if seeing something they couldn't, "There is great evil on the island…" he began, closing his eyes and wiggling his fingers over the crystal ball – doing his funky magic.

"Well, yeah… there are monsters everywhere…" Pipit muttered dryly.

"Young man, I am not done…" the Fortune Teller replied in an irritated tone at being interrupted, he continued as if Pipit hadn't spoken, "Where it all originates... the source, I am talking about the source!"

"…Source?" Karane echoed. Now that sounded like something they could work with. That is, if Sparrot was referring to the source of the bokoblins that were spawning all over the place.

"I see a blade… black as night… stuck in the stone floor… it is pulsing with dark energy…"

"Black blade…" Karane's eyes widened a bit, the image of the rapier being pulled out of thin air with a snap of the demon's fingers flashed through her mind. "That has to be it! Can you see where it is?"

Sparrot took a few moments to respond this time, brow furrowed in concentration and annoyance at constantly being cut off.

"It is dark… and damp… where the rushing water falls…"

The two senior students glanced at each other, speaking at the same time, "Waterfall cave."

They both turned to leave, but not before Pipit looked back over his shoulder at the Fortune Teller who was still too caught up in his ritual to notice.

"Thanks!" he called, before following Karane out of the hall of the Statue of the Goddess.

If they couldn't do anything to help Link for the time being, then getting rid of Skyloft's issue was better than doing nothing at all. They didn't know exactly what they would do once they found the sword, but at least it was a start. If they could get this problem out of the way first, then they could go after their friend.

Pipit narrowed his eyes in determination, 'Just hang on, Link…'


	7. Chapter 7 Frozen Prison

The cave wasn't very far from the Goddess Statue. In less than five minutes, Pipit and Karane had gotten what they needed and headed to the diving platform. In no time they had taken off and immediately sailed towards the entrance of the waterfall cave.

To say Skyloft looked horrible was an understatement, from outside one could still see the raging fires burning down whatever foundation was still left standing on the island. Bokoblins swarmed the place, there were so many now – there was no point in trying to keep them back as they would keep spawning non-stop. Fortunately, they appeared to be too stupid to try and cross the gap between the main island and the section of land that the Goddess Statue was located on, so the survivors were safe, at least for the time being…

The two senior students observed from above with grim expressions as they neared. This was what the once peaceful town had been reduced to in several hours since the initial attack. The place was utterly wrecked, and even if they did manage to somehow salvage it, it would take time to rebuild whatever they had lost and get Skyloft back on its feet.

Shrieks from below caught the duo's attention; some of the little red demons had seen them flying and were now running towards their current location, hopping the stepping stones over the small river to reach the section of land that they were headed for.

"Wonderful," Karane remarked sarcastically.

"Come on, I bet we can lose them in the cave!" Pipit called to her.

With a nod, she jumped off of her Loftwing with Pipit following, both landing not far from the entrance to the cave. What they were doing was most likely incredibly reckless, but if they didn't do something now to take back the island, who would?

Karane glanced back at the small horde of bokoblins rushing towards them – they couldn't waste time with them, more would only take their place. The faster they found the thing, they were after the better.

"Let's go," her friend said, grabbing her hand and pulling her after him and into the darkness of the cavern, the sound of rushing water soon drowning out the bokoblin's angry shouts.

Sometimes couples would sneak away to these caves, usually for dates. Despite the current situation, Karane felt her face grow a little warm as Pipit took her hand, but now was hardly the time for that train of thought. They had a cursed sword to find, and they had to find it fast.

Multiple pairs of footsteps sounded behind them as they ran deeper into the various caverns that made up the whole cave. Their eyes adjusted to the darkness quickly, what little light filtered in through the cracks in the stone above made it all the more easier to see.

But they had to turn around when a particularly loud shriek caught their attention – the red demons were catching up.

"Great," Karane groaned. It seemed some fighting was inevitable; both students drew their swords and began hacking at the dozen or so bokoblins that charged their way. When the small crowd was reduced to nothing but lavender puffs of smoke on the ground, yet another wave of bokoblins was heard approaching, much to their annoyance.

But then they saw a bokoblin fly out of the crowd and slam into a nearby stone wall, its neck snapping instantly. And then another one was sent flying over their heads, hitting several stalactites before falling to the ground with a thump and poofing. Both senior students turned to look back at the cluster of monsters in confusion at the seemingly unknown force easily picking them off.

A familiar face then emerged from the crowd of red, floating over to where they were standing in some surprise.

"You!" Pipit said, "What are you doing here?"

Scrapper punched another bokoblin that approached the three, turning to Pipit soon after.

"I saw both of you head off into the cave, brrzt," he replied, "sheesh, are you insane? There's practically a whole army out there! Anyways, I figured that I might help since both of you are going to help Mistress Fi later, pho-weep!"

Oh, nice to know that he was only assisting them for that main reason.

"How… thoughtful," Pipit said, rolling his eyes a bit. More monsters were coming, so the trio started to retreat further back into the cave, "But thanks anyways. We could use the help."

"I can see that." Scrapper said, not noticing Pipit's eye twitch, "Don't worry, I used to beat up punks bigger and badder than this, these small fries should be no problem! Kzzt, Scrapper is on the job!"

They went deeper into the waterfall cave, simultaneously fighting back the bokoblins as they pursued. Finally, as they rounded another corner, bright purple light caught their attention.

"There!" Karane pointed at the familiar onyx rapier buried in the ground up ahead with a glowing symbol surrounding it. Upon taking a better look at it, dark tendrils of magic appeared to be rising up from the blade, no doubt it was what they were looking for. "That must be what the Fortune Teller saw."

Pipit gave a wary glance at the sinister looking thing, "But how do we…?"

"What are you two talking about? Fzzt," Scrapper said, then turned back to face yet another round of bokoblins, and more were still coming, "well, whatever it is, can you hurry it up?"

Karane slashed and stabbed as more red monsters charged, there were so many now – was it because they were so close to the sword? She saw Pipit approach the blade with caution; they had to remove it somehow, and that was their best bet to make the bokoblins stop spawning. She was so focused on Pipit that she hardly noticed a cleaver-shaped blade being swung at her and turned just in time to block it before slashing its wielder across the throat.

More still came; it was rapidly becoming overwhelming. She raised her sword again but this bokoblin actually blocked her this time and countered, giving her a nasty cut across the arm. She grunted and kicked the thing in its grinning face, clutching her injured arm as blood began to seep through the material of her tunic.

"Karane!" Pipit yelled with concern as she looked back over to him.

"It's nothing," she insisted, it wasn't too much of a wound to handle; she was more concerned about the potentially dangerous sword, "that thing doesn't look so good… be careful, it probably isn't safe to touch."

Pipit reached forward and, using his sword, put the blade through the handle and pulled up with all his might. A loud hissing noise was heard as the sabre came part ways out of the ground, Pipit dropped his sword and fell back, clutching his hands. The blade of his practise sword was nothing but twisted metal now, completely useless.

He groaned and looked down at his hands, his palms were an angry red – the blade had still burned him even though he didn't make direct physical contact with it.

"Are you alright?" Karane asked as she and Scrapper continued to slash and punch at the wave of oncoming bokoblins.

"Argh… I'm fine," Pipit replied as he stood up.

The dark blade was at an angle now; it looked loose enough that a single kick should get it all the way out of the stone. He did just that, running forward and planting his foot on the hilt before pushing. The sabre slid across the floor with several clatters and Pipit winced from the new burn beginning to form.

"You think that might have worked?"

As he watched, the weird glowing symbol began to fade, and so did the dark aura pulsing around the sword. The bokoblins stopped for a moment and exchanged confused looks before shrieking in anger and charging again. Huh, so it looked like it wouldn't be that easy, but that had to have done something at least.

"Only one way to find out," Karane replied, readying her sword for the next round of monsters, "either way, we still have a lot of clean-up to do."

* * *

><p>The burning steel glided along his flesh again, leaving in its trail a scorched and bloodied path. He attempted to hold back a sharp cry of pain as it made its way to his lips, but was not quite able to supress it. His torso and upper arms were covered in both gashes and burns, it was an agonizing combination. The cuts weren't deep by any means, but the pain from the hot metal was more than enough to make up for it.<p>

Ghirahim removed the dagger from the surface of Link's skin, leaving him panting heavily.

"I'm not… telling you… anything..." He panted, his tone was exhausted and did not convey the amount of contempt he had put into it – it just sounded dead. He clenched his teeth, biting back a scream as another scorching gash was added to his blistering skin. Ghirahim merely sighed in exasperation.

"Oh come now, it's not that much of a question to answer," the demon lord idly twirled the dagger between his fingers as he spoke, "I only wish to know why you decided to venture back down to Eldin in the first place. If I'm not mistaken, the Sacred Flame has already been collected, so what reason could you possibly have?"

But Link just pressed his lips tightly together, both to stop himself from crying out and to show that he wasn't going reply to that question. A disappointed click of the tongue was heard from Ghirahim, who shook his head slowly.

"Link, Link, Link… how do I get this through your thick skull? The more you refuse to answer, the more curious I become. I didn't think that your reason for being back down here would be that important, but it looks like I'm being proven wrong with your resistance. Answer me now or…" with a twisted smile, he traced the tip of his finger around the curve of Link's temple to underneath his eye, "I might just be rethinking that decision I made earlier."

The young hero's eyes widened as he realized what the demon lord was implying.

"I…I…" Link stammered, "No… "

Ghirahim narrowed his eyes down at the frightened boy, seizing a fistful of his blonde hair and hissing, "Then you better tell me _something,_ hero. I'm getting angry and, from personal experience, you know what happens when my temper gets out of control."

Link didn't know why he said his next words since they wouldn't help him in any way. All they would do was aggravate the demon further, but still, he felt the need to show that he still held some semblance of defiance – that he hadn't given up yet.

"Yeah…" he managed to get out through his clenched teeth, "you take it out on me… like the coward you are."

The sound of glove on flesh directly followed Link's outlandishly bold statement. The teen's head was turned to the side, cheek stinging from the condescending blow – it would surely bruise later.

Ghirahim still had his hand raised, which he lowered slowly the next second, "'The coward I am?'" he repeated back, fiercely glaring down at the young hero with his dark eyes narrowed dangerously, "Not what I was looking for, but good try."

The back of Link's eyes burned, he squeezed them shut as a small whimper built in the back of his throat, he didn't look back at Ghirahim. Much to his dismay, he felt moisture beginning to leak from the edges of his eyelids – no! Like hell he was about to cry in front of his enemy!

He blinked rapidly in an effort to stop his vision from going blurry, but between the amount of pain from his recent wounds – both physical and mental – it proved to be next to impossible. An involuntary sob wracked his body – and much like how he was powerless to keep Skyloft from being attacked or Ghirahim from inflicting numerous acts of torment upon him, he couldn't stop it.

He cursed silently as he felt hopeless tears freely rolling down his face. Damn it… why was he crying? He could still fight… he could still save himself…

Couldn't he?

Deep down, he already knew the answer to that.

Ghirahim watched as the boy took slow, shuddering breaths in an attempt to hold back his sobbing. The demon lord's expression was impassive but inside, a dark satisfaction was beginning to form. He set down the knife, reaching out to gently cup the side of the boy's face and force him to look forward again. Ah, the fires of rebellion doused by fear and despair. That hard exterior of a courageous and unbreakable spirit was starting to crumble and reveal the true nature of his enemy. He wasn't looking into Link's eyes; he was looking into the eyes of a frightened and hurt child – a stranger.

Link was cracking at last.

And it was absolutely beautiful to watch.

"I'm sorry, it hurts, doesn't it?" Ghirahim's tone took on the guise of sympathy as he brushed away a tear with his thumb, blatant lies slipping past his teeth as he continued speaking, "Oh, how it pains me to see you in such grief…"

The demon lord's actions and words almost made Link gag. He tried to turn his head away but was stopped with two hands holding both sides of his face.

Ghirahim leaned in close to meet his malicious gaze with the hero's own apprehensive one.

"But I wouldn't have to discipline you if you would just cooperate like a good little sky child." At the same time he said this, he ran both hands down the hero's chest and along his stomach, his actions serving only to cause Link further discomfort. And discomfort they did cause, Link gasped sharply and clenched his eyes shut and his teeth together at the fingers aggravating his burns and lacerations, sending sharp jolts of agony throughout his system.

"Please… please don't…" he choked. He didn't want Ghirahim touching him for_ any_ reason. At all.

"By all means, beg me all you want, it only fuels my fun…" the demon grinned heartlessly, "You should hear yourself right now, I never knew Her Chosen Hero was capable of such groveling."

And then Ghirahim's hands unintentionally wandered a bit too low, causing his Link's eyes to snap wide open in alarm, "St-stop!"

The demon lord blinked, it didn't take long for him to catch on to the hero's train of thought… and then a nasty smirk spread across his face. So the sky child wasn't as pure as he thought him to be. Very well, if Link wanted to think that way, then why not make him suffer for it?

"Stop what?" he asked innocently, "What do you think I'm going to do?"

Only because he knew how much discomfort it would cause the hero, he let his fingers rest right above the waistline of his pants as he watched panic flash in the young hero's tearful blue eyes. Oh, how he relished the trembling state the other was in. Link actually thought the demon lord had _that_ in mind and for some reason, Ghirahim found this incredibly amusing.

"Just stop it… Get… off me…" Link managed out, twisting against his bonds once more.

While having Link under the impression that he was going to be violated was pretty funny to observe, he thought he'd get back to business. He hardly thought that attempting to gain submission through _those_ means would get him anywhere, if anything it would probably make Link put up a more stubborn resistance.

Or worse, become completely unresponsive. He wanted submission, not a traumatized wreck of a child on his hands that was incapable of speech.

He narrowed his eyes down at the boy, "Oh _please._ Don't flatter yourself, sky child. A demon lord like me would never touch a lowly human such as yourself in _that_ area." His eyes flickered downward to accentuate his meaning.

"Putting those matters aside for now, I can do this all day…" the demon lord growled, his tone devoid of any sympathy whatsoever, "Or, better yet, you could give me the answer to the bigger question; where the spirit maiden is, and then I can end your misery right now." He suggested, "But until then, _no._ I won't stop."

After a several long moments, Link still remained silent, except for the small gasps of pain he made every few seconds. The burns were so excruciating that he felt like he could black out at any given moment. He must look like a complete mess right now with tears streaming down his face and his body covered in copious amounts of injuries and blood.

And, as much as he hated to admit it, he was scared. No, not even that, he was _terrified._

Ghirahim quickly grew impatient, forming his right hand into a claw shape, digging his fingers into the torn flesh of one of the hero's wounds and drawing out a sharp hiss of torment.

"I'm waiting, _hero."_ He snarled the title.

It was clear then; Link had to say something if he wanted to spare himself further torture. But what would Ghirahim do if he knew he had come to visit the dragon? He had a feeling that if Ghirahim had that information… well… things would not have a good outcome.

However, an idea came to him – what he answered didn't exactly have to be true.

Taking a deep breath to gather his nerves, he prepared to speak.

"I… I came down… because I…" another breath, "I forgot something."

Ghirahim stared at him for a long moment, expression unreadable as he took in the hero's words. Link didn't like that look on his face, he held his breath, gnashing his teeth together behind his closed lips and testing the chains once more. The sharp metal was starting to cut into his wrists, leaving angry red marks and causing him more discomfort than he was already in. Finally the demon lord responded.

"What did you forget?"

Link's mouth opened but no sound came out. Why had he not anticipated that question next? He closed it again, trying to think up some more words that hopefully, Ghirahim would buy. But the demon lord spoke before he had the chance, sensing how caught off guard the boy was as he narrowed his eyes in suspicion.

"You honestly can't answer that, can you?"

The boy's stunned expression said it all.

Ghirahim tsked, shaking his head slowly with a small, unnerving smile on his lips and Link knew he'd made a mistake. In a blur of motion, a fist connected solidly with the side of Link's jaw, forcing a howl of pain from the young hero. Link's head snapped to the side so fast that he swore he got whiplash. His teeth had clipped the side of his tongue and soon, the coppery taste of his own blood filled his mouth. He wasted no time in spitting out the liquid onto the floor.

Ghirahim, no longer smiling, took a firm hold of Link's hair with both hands before the boy had a chance to recover and jerked him almost up to his height. Link's cry of pain from his limbs straining against the bonds that held him steadfast to the floor went ignored.

"_Do you really think you're in any position to lie to me?"_ the demon lord hissed close to Link's face, practically burning his glare into the boy's retinas. His tone was like acid, _"You little worm."_

With that, he slammed the hero back to the floor of the cell, a resounding crack echoed around the walls as Link's head hit the stone and the young hero was gone to the world. When Ghirahim pulled his fingers back, he found that red liquid had stained the tips of his gloves, most likely from where the sky child's skin had broken from the bone-jarring impact. He seriously hoped that Link wouldn't be out too long. Anger still boiled inside, longing for release, and that release would be the sky child's glorious pain.

He brought his hand to his lips, tongue flicking out to lap up the few drops of the sky child's blood that rested on the tips of his fingers, savoring the taste before reaching for the dagger again. He glanced back at Link's face, twisted into a grimace, and forced himself to wait until the boy had regained consciousness again.

He was just starting to think that he might've done some serious damage when the hero's eyes fluttered open.

"Welcome back." The demon lord sneered down at Link, who was merely let out a soft groan in response. He drummed his fingers on the floor beside him, giving the boy a few moments to reorient himself. In the meantime, he sent more magic into his knife until it reheated to the same scalding temperature it had previously been. He once again made it spin in the air above his hand.

Link gave a tiny whimper at the agony flooding his senses; he couldn't even rest his head back because of how badly it ached. He clenched his eyes shut and turned his face to the side as more pained tears surfaced, threatening to spill over.

That plan backfired horribly – all it did was make Ghirahim more aggravated than he already was.

"Now…" the demon started in a considerably lighter tone, but it was only mask to disguise the anger hidden beneath, "I don't want any more of that… you will answer me properly this time, understand? I'm in half the right mind to rip out your eyes and your tongue while I'm at it since you're not putting it to good use." Ghirahim gave a dark laugh, "But really, don't test me, boy. I'll ask you again, why did you come down to Eldin?"

Link opened his eyes, staring up at him in trepidation while Ghirahim stared back in challenge, daring the boy to try and defy him again.

"Might I remind you that you're walking on very thin ice right now?" He growled, abruptly stopping the weapon he controlled from twirling.

Link let out a small defeated sigh, he was tired – he didn't want to play anymore games, he didn't want to be hurt again. He just wanted out… he couldn't take this for much longer. He was only human after all, and humans had their limits.

If all Ghirahim wanted to know was why he came down to Eldin, then fine. He'd sooner give up that information than give up his eyes.

Looking away, Link fixed his gaze on one of the far corners of the cell, muttering something hardly audible.

"The dragon…"

Ghirahim's eyes widened slightly. Link had… Link had just submitted…

The edges of his white lips curved up in a slow, triumphant smirk. Sure it was only a tiny piece of information but still… it was something.

"Eldin?" his eyes narrowed in thought. The hero didn't seem to be lying so he fired his next question, "Well, now that seems believable, but tell me, why would you need to reach the dragon?"

Link didn't answer this time, he just stared blankly at the wall.

"Still so resolute, are we?" Ghirahim's brow furrowed in annoyance, but to be fair, he couldn't really expect Link to tell him everything all at once. He maneuvered the dagger over to the boy's chest again.

"Then it's back to square one it seems…"

* * *

><p>Karane, Pipit and Scrapper all burst from the darkness of the cave, followed by a huge mob of angry red demons. All three sported injuries – the two senior students were covered in a fair number of cuts and bruises, while Scrapper had a few dents in his metal. They were exhausted and wondered if pulling out the sword had worked.<p>

Pipit was currently using the black sword to fight off the bokoblins since his own had been destroyed. The black tendrils coming off of the sabre had vanished when it was pulled out of the glowing symbol so it apparently was safe to touch now. The sword was rather heavy and felt odd to wield.

They all bolted towards the diving platform, slashing down stray monsters that got in their way. There were still so many… although it did appear that their numbers were diminishing slightly.

But they couldn't finish them all off now, of course; that would be impossible since they were too tired from their little expedition in the caves behind the waterfall.

As they neared the dock, running by the remaining bokoblins that stood in their way, Pipit gave Ghirahim's sword to Scrapper to carry back before he jumped into the sky with Karane following suit. They called their Loftwings and headed back towards the Statue of the Goddess as Scrapper flew after them.

"You think that did it?" Karane called to the two over the wind.

"It had to," Pipit replied, "they didn't seem to be reappearing every time we killed one of them."

"Well, I don't know about you two but I'm worn out! Bzzt." Scrapper said, he did look the most beat up out of the three. The robot flew ahead, calling back to them, "Let's head back and refuel up, fooosh!"

"I agree with the robot!" Pipit said as they once again returned to the detached part of Skyloft. They landed in the empty courtyard with no problem, other than slight pain from their injuries.

The two senior students were about to head inside when they saw Scrapper floating up ahead by the entrance to the statue with his back turned towards them. Both looked at each other, then to the robot in confusion. As they approached, he turned towards them with a somewhat excited expression on his face.

"Mistress Fi is contacting me again!" he announced happily.

Shocked expressions crossed the faces of both Karane and Pipit, if she was contacting them, then could that mean…?

Soon enough, another voice drifted from Scrapper, it was the familiar female voice they had heard before.

"_Karane, Pipit, I have some news I should share with you…"_

"What is it?" Karane asked, seriously hoping nothing bad had happened. It was hard to tell with the flat tone of Fi's voice if it was good news or bad news.

"_I've detected a shift in the atmosphere surrounding Eldin,"_ she responded, _"It should be safe to descend down below the clouds in a short amount of time. If you're still up to going after Link, then that is your chance."_

"Of course we're still going after Link!" Pipit answered at once, "We'll leave as soon as we possibly can."

"_That is good to hear, I would suggest getting the necessary supplies for the journey before setting out,"_ the melodic voice spoke, _"Scrapper, would it be alright if you went as well to assist them? That way I can fill them in on whatever information they need."_

Scrapper's response was immediate as he practically leapt out of his metal casing at the chance. Karane and Pipit thought it was safe to say that he was a little more than infatuated with this Fi lady whom they had never seen before.

"Anything for you, Mistress Fi! Fzzt. If that's what it takes to get you and Master Shortpants out of that spot of trouble, then I'm all for it!"

"_Excellent."_ There was a lighter tone to her voice as she spoke this time, _"I trust you will notify me when you are ready?"_

As the two senior students began to walk to the entrance of the statue, Pipit turned and saluted the robot, "Will do."

_Now_ they were getting somewhere.

* * *

><p>The volcanic wind whipped past, carrying the foul scent of sulfur with it. Ghirahim made a face as he emerged into the open air; he didn't very much like this environment, the heat was way too brutal. His bokoblins on the other hand, seemed to thrive in it. But he didn't care a whole lot about what his hordes did, as long as they obeyed all of his orders like good little low-life demons.<p>

He vanished and reappeared near the top of the summit, overlooking the area where his minions had some sort of camp set up.

The sky above seemed to be clearing; he noted the shift in the sinister looking ash cloud that had been spewed out by the eruption. Now it appeared to be receding, clearing the way to the sky.

'Hm… no more running around games for Link then…" he thought, "Pity, I rather liked those.'

If Link actually had a chance of escaping now, then it kind of defeated the purpose of holding him captive in the first place.

But he'd honestly be surprised if Link still had the strength to pick himself up and even attempt to escape again, considering how much torment had been inflicted on him. Their latest session had been the most satisfying so far.

Physically, the boy was at his limits, that much was clear so far. But how he had begged and pleaded for the demon lord to stop was oh so wonderful, and then he'd finally caved and spilled information. Not quite what Ghirahim wanted, but that would come in due time. Patience was virtue after all… he'd have to give Link a chance to rest before he could coax more information out of him.

And hopefully by then, the boy would be at the breaking point, in both mind and soul.

But for now, he had a dragon to find. Link had told him that he needed to see the Eldin dragon-god for something, but hadn't specified what exactly that was. And he'd passed out before he could reveal any more info, making Ghirahim scoff in annoyance. So it appeared that he would just have to go pay this dragon a little visit and find out what Link was searching for. He was curious now; it must be very important. Maybe something the little hero needed to proceed in his adventure?

Then again, he supposed it didn't matter either way; he'd find out what it was, by force or not.

Raising his hand, he snapped his fingers and called a few bokoblins to attention, instructing them to gather their mobs and search the mountain for wherever Eldin could be hiding out. They, of course, listened with rapt attention before heading off to do as they were told.

The demon lord smiled slightly. If only the boy was so obedient…

He turned back to the volcano, preparing to teleport again and begin his search for the dragon himself.

If, by some miracle, Link did manage to escape again and find Eldin (which he knew of course wouldn't happen, not while he was around), then he wouldn't be able to get what he was here for if the demon lord obtained it first. Whatever_ it_ was exactly…

"Well, I'll just have to find out for myself, won't I…?" Ghirahim muttered to himself before disappearing in a flash of diamonds.

* * *

><p>Cold stone against Link's cheek greeted him as he slowly rose from the depths of unconsciousness. Everything was painful. A small, barely audible whimper slipped passed his teeth. Oh Gods, how he hurt…<p>

His head pounded, his wrists and ankles were sore, and the cuts and burns all over his chest and stomach offered unbelievable anguish. There was no way sleep was coming back to him now, and he was having a rather good dream too, which surprisingly didn't turn into a nightmare. He wanted to get back to it, because it was better than in real life where the nightmare itself was reality.

Or more specifically, Ghirahim.

The same dark cell greeted him when he opened his eyes; he was really starting to hate this room…

He let his heavy lids fall closed again, having no will or strength to move himself up into a sitting position, so he lay on his side, facing the wall away from the door.

Had it really only been a few days since he'd been captured? It felt like much more time had passed than that…

He bit his lower lip out of habit when he was stressed, or worried, or lost.

The hero was all of the above at the moment.

He couldn't believe himself; he'd buckled, given in, if only for a short amount of time. He'd told what his mission was down on Eldin. It was only a little information, but what would Ghirahim do with it? It troubled him deeply because in some way, Ghirahim had gained a little victory over him. And if the demon lord's interrogation tactics had worked once, then they could work again.

And again, and again, until Ghirahim got what he was really after.

'_Zelda…'_

Link knew he couldn't let that happen so his only option seemed to be to endure. Take whatever the demon lord had to throw.

If the situation wasn't so serious, he would have laughed. What a stupid notion...

Was he joking? He'd reached his limits, any more damage done to him and he was as good as dead – that much was clear already. And even if he died, it would only be a matter of time before Ghirahim found Zelda anyway. He gritted his teeth together at the thought. But then he remembered that Ghirahim wouldn't let him die until he talked. Either way, he was only delaying the inevitable; if he remained here, he would die, and it would all be over. Everything.

So what was he supposed to do, escape?

He coughed a dry laugh.

Right, like the other five times he'd tried that. There was no way of telling if the door had even been left open or shut this time unless he got up and checked, which he didn't have the strength to do anyways. Besides, he'd only be dragged back again; it was all a game to his enemy. All in good fun watching someone squirm and suffer, wasn't it?

No – he wasn't going to give Ghirahim that satisfaction anymore. He didn't _want_ to give Ghirahim that satisfaction anymore.

Then what could he do?

He wrapped his arms around himself, careful to avoid his wounds as best he could, and resigned himself to lay in the silence that surrounded him. Listening to his breathing and the faint sound of his heartbeat, he tried to push aside the physical distress his body was in, only concentrating on inhaling and exhaling... inhaling and exhaling…

How long he laid there remained a mystery as he drifted in and out of unconsciousness several times, despite his discomfort on the cold tile. He was so exhausted, yet he couldn't fall asleep completely.

But some things blurred together, lost in between fantasy and reality. He couldn't tell which was real and which was not.

He opened his eyes hesitantly, swearing that he'd heard something – no, felt something in the room with him. He cast his gaze around, blinking to clear his blurry vision. Empty, there was nothing in front him…

An uneasy shiver travelled up his spine. No… he didn't want to look… he already knew what was there. He could practically feel the eyes fixated on him from behind. A faint sinister chuckle echoed around the small chamber, but it was hard to pinpoint the source of it.

And then all was quiet again, unnervingly so… the presence didn't feel gone, just lurking in the shadows.

"Go away…" Link whispered, squeezing his eyes shut and covering his ears, wincing as he touched the spot where the Fireshield Earring had been forcefully ripped out. Surprisingly, he did feel it leave and he let out a relieved sigh, but shivered again and rubbed his hands up and down his upper arms, feeling tiny bumps beginning to form. It had somehow gotten… really cold, and he only seemed to just take notice of it now. When did that happen?

He tried to ignore it, but steadily it became more apparent as the minutes ticked by… then an hour. Gritting his teeth together, he curled himself in tighter in an attempt to stay warm. The icy claws of the air brushed against every exposed part of him, he didn't have his tunic or his gloves and gauntlets; his entire upper body was bare.

"Nnh…" he drew a quick, shuddering breath. Why was this happening? This was a volcano… that didn't make any sense!

Then his eyes widened.

"This room is special from the others…well, at least for the time being it is. In any case, the temperature won't rise until I let it."

He remembered Ghirahim's words from before. Did… did that mean it could work in reverse as well?

He didn't need to answer that, the evident was all around him. He exhaled, seeing his breath turn into a small cloud before his eyes, he shivered once more. The tips of his fingers were beginning to go numb, as well as his face. It was too cold now… much too cold. It was like slow acting poison spreading throughout his body and seizing every limb in its icy grip. Bitterly, he supposed he had to commend Ghirahim for his creativity sometimes…

Link raised his hands to his face, cupping them and then breathing into them. He was trembling, both from the cold and from another emotion building up inside him.

A different sound joined his ragged breathing; a faint sob, soon followed by another, and another. It took him a few moments to realize where they were coming from: himself. Goddammit… there was no point in crying… he was only dehydrating himself once again.

"Stop… stop… stop…" he begged himself, feeling that presence beginning to snake out of the shadows once again.

Suddenly he felt himself cough out another laugh. Wasn't it funny that the very reason he was in this mess was for the person he was trying to help? For a moment he felt a stab of spite towards not childhood friend, but Hylia – they were two different people, right? They had to be.

That was it; this was her fault. She had chosen the wrong person to fulfill this destiny if he was stuck here enduring terrible interrogation while she did absolutely nothing–

Whoa, wait, why was he thinking like that? He was momentarily shocked with himself. If there was anyone to blame, it was Ghirahim, he was the one doing this to him!

'He's getting to me…' Link thought with hopelessness. If it was possible, he curled in on himself tighter. It was true though, how much longer could he resist? How much longer could he put on a little defiant act?

He didn't know…

Closing his eyes, he didn't even attempt to hold back the liquid that fell from his eyes and onto the cold stone.

He needed to get out of here. He needed Fi, he needed Zelda, he needed someone.

"Goddess, help me…" he pleaded into the empty air, simultaneously cursing the irony of freezing to death inside a volcano.

* * *

><p>Pipit and Karane had set out not long after grabbing whatever they needed and briefly speaking with Gaepora (also receiving some scolding from the instructors for doing something so reckless) to fill him in their plan, as well as quickly patching up their wounds as best they could. The sun was fast approaching the other end of the horizon and it was either wait until tomorrow to leave or leave now while they still had hours of daylight left. They chose the latter, based on what other information Fi filled them in on about Ghirahim's motives, they could not afford to waste time. Not when Link was in such danger.<p>

It felt weird just to leave Skyloft alone after an attack like that, but they seriously needed to help their friend, and there was no one else around to do it.

Under Fi's instruction, they left the diving dock behind and were now flying across the sky towards the red beam of light. Scrapper flew alongside, using Fi's voice to quickly brief them in about the province, the area, the climate... they were really only half paying attention to her, more focused on the task that lay ahead.

It was kind of exciting… neither of the two had ever been down to the Surface before (of course, neither also expected that they would have to be dealing with kidnapped friends and demon lords) and so, with renewed vigor, they descended into Eldin.


	8. Chapter 8 Rescue?

Another jet of scaling hot liquid came rocketing in his direction as Ghirahim threw up his sword, casting a hasty shield in front of himself to block the attack. He grunted with the effort of keeping his force field intact, but the dragon's assault was quickly overpowering him until finally, his defense shattered and the lava burst through the wall behind him. He, of course, had already teleported to another section of the walkway and out of harm's way.

Damn it – he would say that this wasn't going as well as he had anticipated, but really, it was going exactly as he had expected. A similar situation had happened when he'd tried to inquire (politely) where the Sacred Flame was to Faron… Were all dragons this difficult?

He scowled, must be a dragon thing…

Nevertheless, he faced Eldin again, conjuring up a wall of spinning daggers before shooting them towards the great beast. A swipe of the tail was all it took to knock them away before that same tail came crashing down onto the stone path where the demon's location currently was. But Ghirahim dodged it, leaping high in the air to rake his black blade down Eldin's side. A roar was drawn from the dragon as he reared back and smashed into the wall of the chamber.

The demon lord landed nimbly on the other side of the room, clearing the distance over the lava pit that dwelled in the center of the dragon's den. He turned to look back at Eldin again, but his eyes fell on the molten rock. It was trembling as if an unknown force was manipulating it. Suddenly, several geysers shot up into the air and then curved to aim directly at him. He growled in annoyance, this battle was taking way more time then he thought it would…

Managing to avoid the first one, he had to teleport to avoid the second and third, but not before they nicked the edges of his mantle.

Diamond shapes brought him back to the other side of the room again and he glared at the singed red fabric, then at Eldin. How dare he ruin his favorite cape!

With a snarl of rage, he fired a blast of raw magic at the dragon-god and the scaly mass was blown back, shattering a part of the wall that lay behind. Bits of stone rained down and fell to the pool of lava below with loud splashes. Moments later, the dragon did as well, disappearing beneath the small lake of molten rock.

Ghirahim lowered his outstretched arm, hoping Eldin was dead. He did not know how deep the lava went… nor did he have any desire to find out. Heat resistant he might be, but direct contact with lava would surely kill him, or at least do severe damage.

The demon lord was slightly hunched over, actually _out of breath_ from the brief scuffle he'd had with the dragon. He'd approached with a pleasant demeanor… he didn't threaten Eldin in any way, yet when he'd inquired about business a hero chosen by the Goddess might have with him, things had gotten sour really fast. And, well… this happened…

He glanced around the destroyed room as little chunks of rock still rained down from several places where the stone was still crumbling, the entrance to the grand chamber was in shambles. He had to admit… Eldin had put up more of a fight than Faron.

Running a hand through his hair, he found with displeasure that it was a tad messy and smoothed it down back to its original shape. With a snort, he walked up to the edge of the destroyed walkway, peering down into the magma below and looking for any signs of life. The great dragon did not resurface. After a few minutes he turned to leave – even if Eldin had somehow escaped, he wouldn't go very far with those wounds and he would be dead in no time.

What a stupid animal… how dense could one be? His bokoblins had managed to take over practically the entire volcano (and they weren't the brightest of creatures and even he knew it…) and what did the great dragon-god do? Absolutely nothing. He didn't gain any information either, except for one thing; he knew why that eruption had happened a few days ago and that the dragon was the cause. That very same eruption was what had allowed the demon lord to capture Link in the first place.

He gave an amused sigh, oh the irony of it all…

Ghirahim strode out of the dragon's chamber. He supposed he should have his minions search for a corpse if there was one to be found… or a dying beast to finish off. He raised a hand, snapping his fingers to teleport – much to his chagrin, he found himself slightly dizzy from the effort.

His diamonds took him to the summit of the mountain. Several bokoblins leapt in surprise at his sudden appearance, but quickly righted themselves and stood at attention. He resisted the urge to roll his eyes at them.

"Well, anything new to report?" Ghirahim said, snapping his bloodied sword into thin air and watching the bokoblins relax a little, seeing that he wasn't angry. When he was angry it usually did not turn out pleasant for them, or anyone else for that matter.

The bokoblin closest to him was the one to reply.

Demons, however high or low their standing was, were able to understand each other in speech, no matter how mangled and jumbled that speech was. Bokoblins weren't the most pleasant to listen to talk, but Ghirahim at least knew what the red monster was saying.

The captain spoke carefully, afraid that one wrong word would cost it its insignificant life, which it would.

"Actually, my lord…"

* * *

><p>The sound of bokoblin shouts were closing in as Pipit ran down the volcanic path, a band of red demons in hot pursuit. He ducked behind a wall, watching with a blank expression as the bokoblins just kept on running, and running, until they all tumbled off the side of the path and into the lava below. He winced slightly at their dying screams.<p>

'_They're not very bright, are they?'_ he thought, stepping out and continuing down the way he was going. He could still hear more coming.

Upon arriving to Eldin, they quickly figured out that they would not be very fond of the place. For one, it was blazing hot. For two, this was the place where Link had been captured and was being held prisoner, possibly being tortured as well. For three, the locals were not very friendly.

He slashed another monster out of the way, sending it off the path, and continued running. Link's items and weapons were slung over his shoulder, taken from the bokoblin's camp. He was trying to draw as much attention to himself as possible. Karane and he had been spotted not long after finding Link's stuff due to Scrapper's impatience of reaching the sword that Link owned. The senior student rolled his eyes as he ran, a few more bokoblins spotting him and tailing behind.

So the plan was simple, Pipit would cause a huge diversion while Karane and Scrapper looked for Link and his sword.

Seemed easy enough since the monsters were pretty stupid and easy to evade. Even if they caught up, all it took was a swing of the sword to knock them down–

Whoa, except _that_ one.

Pipit ducked and rolled to the side as an arrow came straight at him. He backed against the wall and out of the archer's line of sight.

Okay… time to find another way around. He scanned his surroundings, something easily catching his attention. He squinted, that didn't look like a bokoblin…

Suddenly his eyes widened and he ducked down low behind a boulder, heart pounding, praying to the Goddess that who he saw did not just see him. He peeked out slowly, eyes fixated on the red and white clad figure perched high up on the rock face.

Ghirahim hadn't seen him, he hoped, the demon lord appeared to be combing the area with his eyes, most likely searching for the intruders – which just happened to be Pipit, Karane and Scrapper.

The senior student narrowed his eyes at the demon lord, watching him take one last glance around before turning and starting back towards the volcano, where Karane and Scrapper had gone to. Then what should he do now? Follow?

No, that would be stupid, he could get caught. Blinking, he saw that the demon lord had vanished from sight and a very bad feeling began to sink into his stomach, not knowing where Ghirahim went.

And not wanting to find out.

Pipit soon found that the urge to run or get away from his current location was rising fast, but he did not have time to act on it.

"You really thought I hadn't noticed?" Fear gripped him at the words spoken centimeters from his ear. He was frozen, the one that had nearly wiped out Skyloft and everyone on it was standing directly behind him. Every instinct said to run the hell away and he was just about to do so when, seconds later, pain exploded in his back.

* * *

><p>"Well, that worked rather well," Karane said cheerfully as Scrapper dropped her down gently onto the tile. Having just flown over the scalding hot cave section to touch down in the main part of the Fire Sanctuary, the human and the robot made their way to the double doors where Fi was apparently located.<p>

"Yeah, Kzzt," Scrapper responded, "you aren't very heavy compared to other loads I've carried."

Karane raised an eyebrow, "I'll take that as a compliment."

They came to a halt in front of the two rather ornate looking, doors.

"Mistress Fi says she is right beyond these doors!" Scrapper exclaimed excitedly, bobbing up and down a bit. Karane looked at the door for a few moments, not really seeing a clear way to open it, and then just settled on throwing her weight against it. It worked and the door creaked open, revealing a large, circular chamber inside. They stepped in, eyes immediately falling on the object resting in the middle of the room.

"That's… Link's sword." Karane said, starting towards the familiar looking blade; she'd seen Link around with it when he'd come to visit Skyloft after returning from the Surface. As she neared, various other oddities about the room became noticeable. Her eyes widened slightly, the tiled floor was splattered with blood in several places. She didn't want to think of whose it was because she already had a pretty good guess.

Reaching for the handle of the sword, she suddenly jumped back in surprise as the hilt flashed blue, a shape twirling out of the pommel, "Whoa!"

That shape formed into a person, or at least something person-like. Karane wasn't sure what to think of the blue and purple humanoid creature now floating before her, but when it spoke she immediately knew who it was.

"_Ah, hello Karane, it is a pleasure to meet you in person,"_ the sword spirit said, and then turned to the robot floating happily by, _"Hello Scrapper."_

Scrapper nearly leapt out of his casing, "We've come to rescue you, Mistress Fi! Bzzt."

Karane relaxed her stance and straightened up, looking at the sword spirit, "You're Fi?"

Fi dipped her head in a nod, _"I cannot thank you three enough."_

"Don't thank us yet, we still have to find Link and get out of here." Karane pointed out.

"_Indeed, then it is best if we hurry now…"_ Fi agreed, then her emotionless face seemed to frown slightly, _"And Karane, I'm sorry for having to drag you and Pipit into this, really, I consider it rather cowardly of me. I apologize."_

Karane merely waved a hand, walking over to remove the sword from its stand. It took a few tries but she managed to get it free.

"No need to, don't forget that Link is our friend as well!" she said, holding up the blade to examine it, "So… you're a… sword? That's why you had to get us to help?" Swords couldn't exactly get up and do things themselves… then again, they also couldn't talk and project images of the spirits that inhabited them. A sudden realization struck her; she didn't know why she hadn't thought about it before… "Say… you were what contacted Scrapper before the attack, trying to warn us..."

Fi nodded again, _"Yes, I tried. But it looked like my efforts were in vain. We must find Link at once. I fear for his condition… his location right now is unknown to me. However I have an estimation of where he may be being held."_

Karane sheathed the sword, "Alright then, let's go."

The three left the chamber, back out into the open air. Fi turned to Scrapper, who had been floating idly by in a sort of daze, _"Scrapper, if I may request a favor of you, do you think you can go locate Pipit? That way we can keep contact with each other."_

The robot snapped out of it before looking disappointed, but never the less agreed. He nodded solemnly, "Okay, Mistress Fi. Anything for you."

Karane couldn't help but feel a pang of sympathy for the robot as he headed off, and then she looked back at Fi, "Well then, lead the way."

* * *

><p>Ghirahim watched with boredom as the yellow-clad boy scrambled to get away from him. Blood had already begun to seep through the material of the backside of his tunic, staining it the same red that coated the demon's sword.<p>

Seriously? His bokoblins couldn't manage to find and kill _this?_ Truly useless creatures they were.

Yet still, this one looked rather familiar… ah yes, the sky child he'd nearly killed up at Skyloft. Well, good knowing he was alive but it wouldn't remain like that for long.

"I knew I had sensed a little rat nearby…" Ghirahim said, advancing on the fallen male without hurry. Hm… what was his name? He knew he'd heard it before… started with a P…

Though he supposed it didn't matter that much; there were bigger questions at hand. Why this human had come down to Eldin was a pretty easy one to answer, he must be a friend of Link's that had staged some meager rescue attempt. Amusing, but how had he known Link had been captured and where he was? The demon lord already had his suspicions but judging from the glare this other sky child was shooting at him, he wasn't going to get any answers from this friend of Link's.

Not that he cared.

He considered this human beneath his attention, so he might as well just make the kill quick since he didn't really feel like wasting any time on him. Raising his sword and preparing for the fatal strike, he suddenly stopped as a small blue object rolled towards him. A roll of the eyes was all that was given from the demon lord; even as the bomb exploded right in front of him, he made no move to get away. The smoke that followed the small explosion blocked his vision for a few moments. When it cleared, there was no human to be found. Upon closer inspection, it appeared that small droplets of blood had been left in a trail leading down the path.

Ghirahim looked faintly annoyed, but nevertheless, a smirk crossed his face. He knew the boy wouldn't get very far. He really wanted to finish the sky child off for himself since he had failed to do so before.

"Better make this quick then…" he muttered, moving to follow, "I'm not in the mood for hide and seek…"

* * *

><p>Pipit felt like his chest was about to burst open. He ran, although the pain in his backside was so excruciating that he had to stop and catch his breath.<p>

Leaning against a rock, he panted, clutching his sides and feeling warmth on his hands that wasn't coming from the blistering hot temperatures of the volcano. Reaching into his pouch of items, he quickly grabbed a bottle and removed the lid, taking a quick gulp of the potion before stowing it back away. The pain lifted as he felt his wounds seal up and he immediately began running again, not wanting the demon lord to catch up too soon.

He dodged very confused bokoblins as he ran; he was honestly surprised Ghirahim didn't notice he had the cursed black sword that the demon lord had left on Skyloft. The thing managed to fit in the sheath that he carried; bouncing against his back, all he had to do was wait for a chance to use it…

He stopped again, ducking behind another boulder, getting off of the path that he was sure he was getting chased down.

'_Now where do I…'_ Five objects whistled by him, the uppermost one cutting his cheek as a shocked expression crossed his face. He snapped his head around to see Ghirahim with a smug look on his face as he walked towards him, taking his sweet time as the fear on Pipit's face grew.

Without a second thought, he ran down the path again, darting around corners and nearly crashing into what he thought was another bokoblin.

"Hey!" Scrapper said, alarmed, "It's just me, sheesh, watch where you're going!"

"No time to," Pipit shot back, motioning for the robot to follow as they booked it, not really sure where they were running to.

"Why are you back?" The senior student huffed. He thought that Scrapper was supposed to be helping Karane.

"We found Fi!" Scrapper replied, "She said I should come back and help you out, but I can keep contact with her and your girl, fwoosh!"

"That's actually a good idea," Pipit said, having to stop for breath again, one hand on the wall of the cliff side. But what do they do now? He knew that they couldn't just keep running around like this while they waited for Karane and Fi to find Link. That could take a while and Ghirahim was chasing after them now.

Pipit gritted his teeth, so what do they do?

He was about to open his mouth and say something to Scrapper when a shower of sparks bombarded him, bits and pieces of robot flew everywhere as it exploded, leaving Pipit in a state of shock. Slowly, he moved his gaze upwards, mouth agape.

There, on the rock face above him, was Ghirahim giving him condescending smirk with his dark eyes narrowed in malice. Pipit knew he was screwed before the demon lord even spoke his next words.

"Found you."

* * *

><p>A shiver passed through Link's body, seizing up his muscles as a small exhale left his lips. The darkness lifted slowly, leaving him in a dreadful state of half-consciousness.<p>

Cold… everything was cold… but not sub-zero as it had been before. A weak moan left his lips, body still in agony from the burns and lacerations inflicted upon him. He felt one last gasp constrict his throat, the remnants of the pitiful sobbing he'd done over the past several hours he'd been trapped here. His face was still wet with hopeless tears.

Weak. He was so weak.

He couldn't cry anymore even if he wanted to, he'd completely exhausted himself and was now in need of hydration again. But the idea of begging for water once more from that… that… he didn't even have a word for the monster that had done this to him, it was too much to handle at the moment.

He wanted – no, he _needed_ to get out of here.

His blue eyes opened a crack, vision blurring as the leftovers of sleep drifted away with deliberate slowness. It was odd… there was no way he'd imagined freezing to death, the temperature had dropped below the freezing point no doubt. He'd seen his limbs turn black from the cold as it bit into him and drew him into its icy clutches. He'd felt the numb agony as it swept over him without mercy and he'd heard the mocking laughter as the scene was observed by whatever had been lurking in the shadows. Another shudder passed through his being as he remembered.

There was no way he had imagined that, right?

Yet still, he found himself able to move his fingers and curl his toes. Hesitantly, he shifted his eyesight down to his hands, breath shaking. Normal – not blackened with the skin coming off in several placed as previous visions had suggested. He felt himself let out a relieved sigh, his body wasn't rotting. Whatever that gruesome nightmare he'd just experienced had told his mind that it wasn't real, but the fear it had instilled remained. He felt sick just remembering it.

Sick and tired and helpless.

So what would he do now…? He didn't want–

Footsteps. Outside the cell.

The hero's eyes widened briefly, before squeezing shut as he went rigid, not daring to move an inch. An all too familiar emotion creeping up on him once again: fear. Again, it was coming.

'_No… no… no…'_ He didn't want more pain. No, he was at his limits. Goddess, it hurt too much. No. Please _no._

Something slammed against the door of the cell, the sound ricocheting around the small room and making him jump slightly. Again, another slam – something was trying to get in. Link didn't know what and he wasn't thinking clearly enough to rationalize what it could possibly be. All he knew was that it most likely wanted to cause him more torment and he just couldn't take that at the moment. Instinct said to hide, but he hardly had the strength to accomplish that, so he just curled up in the middle of the floor and prayed for whatever was trying to enter would just leave him alone…

* * *

><p>With one final heave, Karane tumbled into the room as the door burst open. All was dark, not so much that she couldn't see at all, but she still had to let her eyes adjust for a moment.<p>

It was surprisingly cool in here despite previous temperatures. She didn't bother questioning it; it was way too bloody hot in this place anyway. This was Fi's best estimation of where Link was being kept, and she could be right. Glancing around, she quickly spotted a shape lying down on the floor.

Karane approached slowly, cautiously as she drew near and took in the person's form. The person was without a shirt; their upper body was completely bare and if she looked closely, she could see the raised lines of various scars and bruises. She couldn't see the person's face; he or she had their back turned. What clothing they had left was very familiar, and the dirty blond hair that spilled out on the floor was a tell-tale sign of who it was.

"Link!" She gasped and ran forward towards her friend. A soft, pained sound was heard from him. Her stomach twisted, never before had she heard and seen him so… defeated.

The senior student knelt down beside him, reaching her hand out to roll him over. Surprisingly, he reacted almost instantly.

Link pushed himself away from her hurriedly – or as hurriedly as he could with the amount of injuries he'd sustained. He scooted back until he was pressed against the wall, face turned to the side and emitting small whimpers. Karane just stared in confusion at how her friend was acting.

"Goddess, what did he do to you?" she whispered in shock.

She could see him clearly now: angry looking gashes riddled his chest and stomach as well as his upper arms. Some of them were beginning to turn a strange shade of color; possible signs of infection. His pants were stained with blood – unquestionably his own – in various places. His wrists were wrapped in painful-looking red marks. Though his face was mostly obscured by his hair, she could still see the few bruises and cuts that had been inflicted there. It was such a horrible sight. Seeing her friend like this was just…

"Link?" she said softly, slowly making her way towards him as he pressed himself further back. He was frightened, but why? Did he not see it was her?

Her eyes widened as she realized that could be exactly it; it was a very likely possibility that he couldn't be thinking properly and was mistaking her for someone else. A flash of anger overtook her; from what abuse had been inflicted upon him, she had a pretty good guess of who that _someone _was…

Pushing aside resentful thoughts for the time being, she came to the conclusion that she had to make Link see it was her.

"Link, It's alright! It's me, Karane!" She said, coming close, but not too fast, like how one would approach a scared Remlit, "I'm not going to hurt you… I'm your friend."

Link didn't move, but just stayed motionless in the same position, even when she was right in front of him. He still didn't look at her, just continued to try and blend with the wall. Unsure of what to do, Karane just remained there and watched her friend cower. Seeing her friend like this was too painful. What exactly had he done to deserve something like this? Why hadn't they come sooner?

"Please…" he spoke, so lowly that she barely heard, "don't…"

That was it. He had to see now that it was her and not Ghira-what's his name. Karane reached forward and gently tilted his chin up, careful to avoid the huge bruise on his jawline, her other hand brushing the hair out of his eyes. He visibly flinched but didn't move or try to get away.

His eyes were blank and dull, but fearful. Then they widened slightly, finally starting to actually see who it was.

"You… but…" he stammered, blinking and shaking his head as if coming out of some horrible daze. Karane gave him a small reassuring smile.

"Yes, it's me. We're here to help."

Link seemed to process this for a few moments, complete bewilderment coming across his expression before he reached with both arms and pulled her into a tight embrace, hoping that this was rescue and not some other cruel illusion. But she felt real and she was real. His eyes burned with tears that would never come.

Karane hugged her friend back, but cautiously as to not agitate his injuries.

At that point, a blue light flashed from the sword that Karane carried, Fi spiraling out of the blade and materializing next to her as the two pulled away.

"_Master Link, my greatest apologies for the delay in assistance," _the sword spirit said, sadness evident in her blank tone as she observed her master's state. Link just stared, completely dumbfounded at the appearance of the being whom he'd been separated from for some time now.

"But… you… Skyloft… what?" he struggled to say, grimacing slightly. Karane noticed this immediately; he must be in terrible pain from his wounds.

She reached into the pouch she carried and pulled out a bottle full of bright red liquid, quickly pulling off the cork and raising it to his lips.

"We took some heavy damage…" she explained as he drank the potion. She winked with her next words, "But we aren't wiped off the map just yet."

As he downed the potion, the wounds on his chest seemed to grow less and less nasty looking, the bruises and cuts on his face seemed to diminish in color as well. It wasn't long before the potion had disappeared down his throat and most of his wounds were healed, though prominent scars proved their existence. It was clear that those would never fade. Nevertheless, she gave him another potion. If they were to get out of here, then he needed to have his strength back.

Link finished the other potion quickly, noticeably looking better already. He spoke clearer now, "I thought you were…" his eyes drifted to the corner of the room where an object lay. Karane followed his gaze before spotting the yellow knight cap on the ground. Pipit's hat. Her eyes widened as she quickly put two and two together, looking back at Link.

"I don't know what he made you think but Pipit is alive." Karane said, gesturing to Fi, "We both came to help you after she told us what happened."

Link just stared at Fi, "But… what… how?"

"_If I may make a suggestion,"_ Fi said, _"it would be better if we left now and explain later. We should rendezvous with Pipit and return to the sky at once. And Master Link… I am truly sorry for the delay… I did not come to the conclusion that you needed help soon enough."_ She dipped her head once in a short bow.

"It's alright… thank you, Fi." Link said, still in a bit of a shock at the sudden turn of events.

"We better get out of here," Karane said, standing up and holding out a hand for Link.

"There was something I had to do, but it can wait." He said, shaking his head slightly to clear it as he was helped to his feet, "You're right, let's go. I'm just about tired of this place…" his eyes then fell on something on the ground and he went over to pick up the two objects he had lost earlier, putting them in his pocket. Sure as hell wasn't a good idea to leave the Fireshield Earrings here. He turned back to Karane and Fi.

Karane handed the sword sheath and Master Sword to Link, returning them to their owner who slung the strap around his shoulder.

"I will contact Scrapper and tell him to rendezvous." Fi said, floating alongside the two as they started out of the cell and into the dimly lit corridor. Karane couldn't help but notice how off something was in her friend's eyes, a hollowness there that she'd never seen before and it made her uneasy. His step would falter slightly every so often, as if he were fighting some great fatigue. She kept close, frowning and wondering what he'd been through in the past few days.

After about a minute, Fi still hadn't responded. Karane looked at her with growing concern as she watched a slight frown come over the sword spirit's metallic face, "What's wrong?"

"_I… cannot reach him."_ Fi answered and the senior student's eyes widened. Link looked over in confusion, not quite knowing what they were talking about.

"No…" Karane's expression fell into worry, "We have to move, quick."

* * *

><p>Ghirahim's hand was clasped firmly around Pipit's throat, the senior student's feet couldn't even touch the ground, not that there was ground to touch…<p>

The boiling hot lava awaited his imminent fall below. The demon lord's hold was the only thing keeping him up. He clawed at the hand gradually cutting off his air, coughing and kicking, desperately trying to gain some footing.

"So you aren't here alone… I should have suspected as much." Ghirahim said, then sighed rather dramatically, "I'm wasting my time with a decoy…" he mused to himself, "Shall I kill you now?"

He purposefully loosened his grip and Pipit reflexively clung to his wrist and yelped. But Ghirahim didn't drop him, merely smirking at the fear he was instilling on this human child.

"Oh, but wait. You're a friend of Link's, correct?" he questioned, tilting his head slightly. Pipit narrowed his eyes, hating this man for all he'd done to Skyloft and, quite possibly, to Link.

"Where is he?" The knight growled – more like choked. Ghirahim smiled with malevolence.

"Wouldn't you like to know?" He pulled Pipit towards him so that he wasn't dangling him over the edge anymore, "Perhaps you might be of some use to me."

With that, he turned and threw Pipit at the wall. The teen grunted and then fell to the ground, landing roughly on his hands and knees. But he was up in an instant, drawing the black blade that rested in his sheath and rushing Ghirahim, actually almost catching the demon lord off-guard.

Surprise flashed across Ghirahim's face as he saw the cursed sword he had left on Skyloft to make the monsters spawn. Huh, so the brats had managed to find it. That meant that…

Amusement quickly replaced his initial surprise as he caught the sword between his fingers before it managed to hit him. Attacked with his own blade. Hah.

Even if they had managed to stop his hordes from appearing on that piece of rock, it didn't matter that much; it wasn't a huge loss.

"Oh, how nice of you to return this!" He taunted, pulling the sword from the startled boy's grasp, "You sky children are just so precious sometimes."

Pipit backed up until he hit the wall again, now disarmed. Well THAT plan failed miserably. Ghirahim advanced, that unnerving smile never leaving his face, "It seems only natural that I should return the favor."

He thrust the sword forwards deep into Pipit's shoulder, causing him to let out a yell of pain as the yellow of his tunic soon turned a dark red. Ghirahim twisted the blade heartlessly before wrenching it out and causing the senior student to fall to the ground as blood gushed forth from the injury.

The demon lord smirked, and then raised his hand to snap his fingers, disappearing and leaving Pipit to writhe in pain and wonder just what the hell he was up to.

* * *

><p>With a gasp, Link collapsed to his knees once again, coughing and clutching his stomach. He felt absolutely horrible. His stomach tried forcing up whatever was in it, which was nothing, so all he threw up was sickly yellow bile. He spat it out onto the tiled ground, the bitter taste it left in his mouth making him want to retch again.<p>

Karane stood by, concerned for her friend's well-being. Though his physical wounds had been healed for the most part, it appeared that other damages red potions couldn't fix had been inflicted. They'd been making their way back to the summit, but Link looked like he was getting worse. She rested a hand reassuringly on his shoulder as his body shook and convulsed.

Fi appeared from the pommel of the Master Sword to float by Link, _"Master, I am concerned. You are not well."_

Link hastily drew the back of his hand across his mouth, his throat burning and desperately wishing he had some water to wash the foul taste away. "I'm well enough to get through this," he said, raising his head as something ignited in his eyes: determination. He had a chance of getting away, he could make it out of this, but he needed to _move._

Forcing himself to his feet, despite the protest his body gave, he started walking forwards again with Karane keeping close to him. Fi hesitantly disappeared back into the Master Sword.

They had to find Pipit and Scrapper and find out what had happened to the both of them. With each passing second, their worry increased and they feared the worst (which could very likely be the case.)

They proceeded, making their way through the Fire Sanctuary and finally out along the bridge that led to the front of the Earth Temple. For Link, every step felt like absolute hell, he half collapsed a few times again but Karane helped him up.

"Karane… don't take this the wrong way, but when we get back to the sky, I might take a bite out of your Loftwing." He said dryly with a small smirk as he was helped to his feet. The senior student couldn't help but smile and shake her head at his humor in this situation. It really wasn't that funny though, he did look thinner.

"When was the last time you ate?" she asked with concern.

"I hadn't eaten a lot before I left Skyloft to come to this place… I really didn't think it would take that long for me to make a trip here and back," Link explained, then looked slightly sheepish, "how wrong I was…"

They soon made it to the entrance of the cave that led to the entrance of the Earth Temple.

"Up ahead, the temperatures are extremely high, so we can't go that way," Link realized, but then remembered something, "but there's another way around, I found it when I was…" he trailed off, recalling the five escape attempts he'd made from those 'games' Ghirahim had played with him. He probably knew this volcano a lot more than he would ever like to by now.

"When you were what…?" Karane pressed. Link was silent for a few moments.

"Wasting time." He finally answered. Before Karane could ask what that meant, he fired another question, "How did you get past this part anyways?"

She blinked, "Oh, Scrapper flew me over it, we sent him back to Pipit after we found your sword but…" she trailed off as they started down the hidden path that led around the boiling hot section of the volcano. They still didn't know what had happened to Scrapper and Pipit, and it was making them uneasy, more uneasy than they already were.

"Let's just hope we find him before…" Link grimaced slightly, both from the physical stress and from the thought of him getting his hands on his friends, "before something bad happens."

The walk to the front entrance of the Earth Temple felt like miles to Link, but the both of them managed to get through it. They seriously hoped Pipit and Scrapper were nearby so they could just leave already. The bird statue was close, the sky was clear and literally nothing stood in the way of their escape.

Fortunately their prayers were answered. As soon as they rounded the corner, they nearly ran into a blood-covered Pipit.

Karane's eyes widened in alarm, but he held his hands up to show he was otherwise fine, "It's okay, I had a potion…" His eyes then fell on Link, brightening with relief that they'd managed to find their friend but also clouding with worry at the state he was in. Link swayed a bit on his feet but Pipit hurried to steady him, "Maybe it's best if we leave now."

Karane relaxed a bit, nodding, then looking around, "Where's Scrapper?"

Pipit didn't answer as they started making their way towards the bird statue not too far away, Link's arm was around his shoulder with its owner looking like he was about to be sick again. The senior student shook his head to her question, leading her to believe what the answer was.

"Oh…" Karane replied. She was just beginning to like the robot…

They were right outside of the temple now. Link raised his head, adrenaline picking up. He brought his arm off of Pipit's shoulder, forcing himself to continue walking himself.

The bird statue was so close by, if they could just reach it before–

Bright yellow, black and red shapes flared up into a barrier all around them, cutting them off from one another and blocking them from reaching the statue.

–that happened.

Link's eyes widened, quickly looking to Karane and Pipit who were behind him, looking to each other in alarm. Three walls separated the trio; he couldn't reach his two friends.

Damn! No! They could see their escape, it was so close! The bird statue was literally right in front of them, but just out of their reach at the same time.

Of course, just like before. Escape dangled in front of him, only to be ripped away at the last possible moment.

This game was all too familiar. He should have expected this. Why didn't he expect this?

Link fell to his knees, from both exhaustion and hunger, waiting for _it_ to come. As if on cue, it did.

"How rude, we haven't even finished our time together and you think you can leave just like that?" A despised voice boomed mockingly. Pipit and Karane looked around frantically for the source while Link just stared, not even bothering to draw his sword even as the hilt flashed blue, prompting him to do so.

"You're sorely mistaken, sky child. You aren't going _anywhere."_

Diamond shapes arranged themselves in a pattern a short distance ahead, parting to reveal a figure. Link's eyes fixated on Ghirahim blankly, who gave a small, yet malicious grin in return, cocking his head slightly before shifting his gaze to the bird statue the three had been trying to reach.

"Oh, _so_ close yet so far." He commented, shaking his head in mock mournfulness at their loss. Then he looked at Pipit and Karane, who were glaring at him past the walls that they were imprisoned behind, their hateful looks doing little to faze him, "Quite the valiant little rescue attempt your friend's made…" his eyes sparked with something dangerous as he said this. Link knew that look better than anyone else.

"Leave them out of this." He said immediately.

The demon lord sighed, tossing his hair back casually, "I'm afraid I can't do that, dear boy."

A sudden rush of staggering anger shot through his being. It wasn't fair how Ghirahim could just take control of the situation whenever he damn well pleased. Ignoring how tired and weak he felt, he jumped to his feet, drawing his sword and forcing down the wave of nausea the sudden action brought, "They aren't involved in this, let them go!"

Ghirahim looked him up and down, something caught between pity and amusement flashed across his face. Though the Master Sword was in the boy's possession, he hardly considered Link a threat above an angered Kikwi at the moment. The hero looked as if he could keel over at any second.

"Oh no, that's where you're wrong," the demon lord replied with an infuriating smirk, and then he spread his arms wide in a grand gesture, "They came of their own accord to try and assist you. Just by doing that, they have wandered into my field of attention, and therefore, yes, they are involved." He lowered his arms, starting to stalk towards the trio, tapping his chin thoughtfully, "But the question remains: what to do with them? Yes, what to do… what to do…"

Link's defensive stance deepened, a glare soon taking form on his face as Ghirahim approached. It did little to deter the demon lord, who merely continued to advance with an evil smile.

"If you dare try and hurt them, I won't tell you anything," Link said lowly. Ghirahim raised a brow at how he tried to sound threatening, knowing how scared the boy really was deep down. The fear that Link had tried to push back beneath the surface was practically tangible.

"Oh, well that's good then! I wasn't planning on hurting them," Ghirahim smiled wider, relishing how that fear and uncertainty grew and gradually started to push the anger aside, "at least not directly."

"What do you–" Link started, but was cut off as the demon lord suddenly shot forwards, grabbing him by the shoulders and spinning him to face Pipit and Karane, throwing him off balance slightly.

"Though they mustn't go unpunished for the little stunt they pulled…" Ghirahim murmured close to Link's ear, "However I don't think punishing them myself would be quite as… _rewarding."_

Link regained his senses, finally making a move and spinning back around to slash at Ghirahim. It was easily avoided, the demon backing up a few meters, smirk ever present.

"I don't know what you're talking about," the young hero said. It was true; Ghirahim's words were beyond confusing at times, and now was one of those times. What was he playing at?

"You don't? It should be fairly obvious," the demon lord said, taking a step towards the three apprehensive sky children, though his malevolent gaze was still fixated on his main enemy.

"I'm not going to punish them because, Link, _you_ are."


	9. Chapter 9 Hell Calls Hell

Link stood, mouth agape, unable to believe what he'd just heard. Why on earth would he ever do something like that to Pipit and Karane? Especially after _they_ came to rescue him.

Then he scowled at Ghirahim, though uncertain and wary. The demon lord couldn't get him to do something like that no matter what, so he had nothing to worry about…

Yet an uncomfortable knot was forming inside his stomach, and it wasn't from the hunger.

There was no way Ghirahim could force him to hurt his friends, right?

Pipit and Karane were equally as surprised and puzzled, at a loss for words but also scared at how badly the situation had turned against them. They couldn't reach Link and they couldn't reach each other because of the diamond walls separating them. Unable to aid each other and at a loss for what to do, the senior students opted for the course of action with a chance of getting out of this mess: bashing the barriers Ghirahim had set up and hoping that they would cave.

Karane drew her own sword and made slices at the magic wall, but it was like trying to hack at cement with plastic – an absolutely useless attempt. Her strikes merely bounced off, she gritted her teeth in growing frustration. Pipit had the same issue, though he realized quickly that trying to break through a magic wall with your bare hands (as he had no sword) was rather stupid, and stopped, glancing up at the four meter high barriers with his eyes narrowing in thought.

Ghirahim merely yawned as the two fruitlessly tried to break out of their confines. "Don't tire yourselves out," he called in a taunting manner, and then shifted his attention back to Link to gauge his reaction, smiling at the younger male's blatant confusion. A half-hearted glare was given from Link, who still had his sword held at the ready.

"Let them go, let all of us go." The hero said, though it sounded less like a command and more like a plea.

"Or what?" Ghirahim had suddenly moved in front of him, leering down at the boy as he took a step back from the demon lord. "You'll try and attack me? You're funny." Ghirahim continued, narrowing his eyes as he advanced. He was now in range of the Master Sword's bite and Fi spoke into Link's mind, prompting him to take a swing at the demon. Before he could even move his arm, Ghirahim backhanded his wrist, parting the sword from its master and sending it to the floor several meters away. And then suddenly Link found it very hard to breath; a gloved hand had wrapped around his throat and forced him back against the diamond barrier.

Ghirahim leaned in, "Don't forget, I call the shots here." He growled close to Link's terrified face and squeezed harder, earning a choked gasp.

"Leave him alone!" Karane yelled from behind the semi-transparent wall and slammed her palm against the barrier, drawing his attention to her. The look of pure hatred she gave him went ignored; instead, something else fell under his notice…

Where was the other sky brat?

Sudden pain bit into his upper bicep, forcing a surprised grunt from him. He blinked, looking to see an arrow had buried deep in his arm, before tracing back the angle at which it had stuck in to see Pipit loading another one onto the bow he suddenly held.

"Shame," Pipit said, pulling the arrow back tighter and aiming once again at the demon lord, "I was aiming for your neck."

Ghirahim narrowed his eyes up at the Skyloftian who had somehow appeared on the ledge above the temple door. How on earth did he get up there…?

"And I'll have yours…" the demon lord growled back, then gave a smirk, "But are you sure you should really be doing that? You could hit him." His gestured to Link, whose eyes were closing as consciousness was slowly leaving him. Ghirahim loosened his hold slightly, allowing the hero to breath before turning his attention back to Pipit and forcing Link in front of him. "And I don't think you want to kill the one you came here to rescue."

Pipit lowered the bow, gritting his teeth together before reaching inside the adventure pouch he carried and pulling out one of Link's items – oh, that was how he got up. "Karane!" He yelled, and threw the object to her.

Karane reached up and caught the Clawshot, slapping it on her hand and using it to grapple herself up to the same ledge Pipit was on.

"Well, what now?" she said, quickly steadying herself and glaring down at Ghirahim. They knew they couldn't beat him, but if they could just manage to break his concentration… if only for a little while. It might be enough to get rid of the barriers and reach Link, and then they had a shot at getting out of this place.

So it was clear that they needed a plan, but how were they supposed to deal some damage to an all-powerful demon lord with the meager tools they had?

The answer lay on the ground some distance away, hilt flashing blue.

"Oh children," Ghirahim called, pushing Link aside and sending the boy to the ground where he lay to cough and clutch at his abused throat, before walking forwards, "you can't stay up there all day." As he said this, he reached up and yanked the arrow lodged in his arm out without so much as a grimace, casting it to the side. The wound quickly began to seal up as his diamonds worked their magic.

But he soon found himself tiring slightly; keeping the barriers standing was a lot of work, especially after wasting so much magic on the dragon. He brought down the two walls that had kept Karane and Pipit confined, seeing no reason to keep them up. Instead, he directed that energy to creating a small dome around the bird statue – precaution to ensure that they really didn't escape.

The two senior students had already begun to formulate a plan. It wasn't much, but it was the best they had.

Pipit took out a small blue object, nodding to Karane before tossing the object down to Ghirahim's feet where it exploded with a loud boom. The demon lord raised an arm over his face, momentarily blinded by the smokescreen the bomb had caused. He growled in annoyance at the feeble attempt at harming him… only to stagger back a few feet the next second as steel lashed out at him, again and again. One slice managed to make a shallow cut across his chest and another nicked his arm.

How irritating that was…

As the smoke cleared, Pipit once again came at him, Karane's sword in hand. He swung at the demon lord, only for it to easily be blocked. Vigorously, he pulled back and slashed again, over and over… desperately trying to keep Ghirahim's attention on him and not on…

"Not so fast."

Karane was blown back by a blast of yellow magic, away from the Master Sword she had made a beeline for. She slammed against the far diamond wall and let out a sharp cry from the painful impact before falling to the ground and lying motionless. Pipit's eyes widened in alarm, then narrowed to a glare at the demon and once again charged to attack. Ghirahim only stared back, completely bored of this already as he flicked his hair out of his face.

"You both are nothing more than minor nuisances," he said, effortlessly grabbing the sword attempting to skewer him and halting it in midair, "the only reason I'm refraining from killing you at the moment is because I have something more amusing in mind."

Before Pipit could make a retort, Ghirahim grabbed him by the throat and threw him to smash into the wall beside Karane. Pain shot up and down the knight's spine as his head smacked against the magic force field, the air leaving his lungs. He felt himself sink face-first into the broken tile. Through his darkening vision, he saw the demon lord a short distance away, slowly stalking towards Link as the young hero was struggling to push himself up…

No… he had to do something… if he went unconscious now, then it was over…

If Link had looked over, he would have seen Pipit's eyes closing, but he was a little preoccupied with trying to reach his blade. Ghirahim was all too kind to help him up.

Reaching down, he pulled Link up by a fistful of his hair. The hero groaned in pain as he was forced to his knees, before his head was turned towards the inert forms of Pipit and Karane.

"You do have such lovely little friends, coming to rescue you as if you're actually worth saving…" the demon lord said with disgust, rolling his eyes, "how sickeningly sweet that is."

Link reached up, trying to pry the fingers away from his hair. Ghirahim only tightened his hold in response, drawing out a sharp hiss from the teen as the strands began to rip from their roots, "Did you forget that you would sooner trade their lives for the Goddess? It's a wonder they even came to aid you after you allowed that island to be attacked in the first place…"

Link couldn't believe what he was hearing; he wasn't the one that had actually attacked Skyloft!

"I didn't have a choice…" Link growled back, and then gave a sharp gasp as his head was wrenched backwards and he was forced to look up at the face he really didn't want to see.

"Wrong. I gave you a choice, and it seems that the life of one girl is more important than the lives of an entire town. Again, you sacrifice too much for the Goddess without gaining anything in return." Ghirahim said with scorn, narrowing his eyes, "Why can't you see that your situation is unwinnable?"

Link opened his mouth, but then realized he didn't have a response as the demon lords words sunk in. How was he supposed to respond to that when even he felt the situation was truly hopeless?

"No retort? Are you simply too tired to make one or maybe…" Ghirahim cocked his head slightly, as if reading his mind he said, "…you see that my words hold some truth to them?"

A look of brief shock flashed across Link's face and Ghirahim smirked before releasing his hair and letting his head fall forward.

"I suppose it doesn't matter either way," he said, circling around so that he was in front of Link again. But Link didn't move from his position, there was no point if he didn't even have the strength or will to. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a white gloved hand reach down and pick up his sword where it had been laying.

"Now comes the fun part…" Ghirahim spoke, examining the Master Sword as the hilt of the sacred blade flashed blue in a warning that went ignored. "Since I made such a troublesome mistake of letting them live before – silly me – I figure it would only make sense that I finish the job I had intended to do before…" Link listened in growing trepidation as Ghirahim continued, "Though I doubt their screams and pleas for mercy would be quite as satisfying as yours, it would help me relieve some of this unhealthy stress I've been having..."

No! He wasn't going to let that happen! Ghirahim wasn't going to come near Pipit and Karane.

His mouth opened but no words left, the horror must have been evident on his face because Ghirahim smirked and began to walk towards the hero. Link forced himself to his feet – ignoring the wave of nausea coursing through him – and faced the demon lord.

"Ah, of course you would object," Ghirahim smiled as if he knew something Link didn't, "which is why I offer you another choice, hero…"

Flipping the blade so he was holding it handle-first to Link, he motioned with his head towards where the two senior students lay.

And Link's eyes widened in realization, he looked from the Master Sword to Ghirahim, and then shook his head slowly.

"You can't be…"

Ghirahim's smile widened a bit, further urging on the growing apprehension within Link's very being.

"I assure you that I am," the demon lord said, stepping forward as Link stepped back, "It would be so easy right now since they're unconscious, they wouldn't feel a thing."

The young hero continued to back away, weighing his options. Couldn't he just take his sword and attack Ghirahim now? He bit his lip, as if he could take on the demon lord while in his current condition. He was too weak and exhausted; it was a fight just to keep himself standing. Say he did manage to land a hit on the demon lord by some miracle, then what? That would probably only serve to anger the demon lord even more, and judging from the warning glare he was receiving, if he did something like that, then it was probably going to be met with sharp retribution.

"No…" he said, unable to stop his voice from shaking a bit, "I'm not doing that…"

Ghirahim regarded him for a few moments, narrowing his eyes slightly.

"Are you sure?" He said, advancing still, "Three seconds, Link, three seconds and they would be dead – swift and painless. As opposed to later when they're awake… and can feel everything." Another step forward, another step back, "And believe me, later you'll wish you had killed them yourself. I'll make sure that you will be watching and listening as I end their lives slowly. So you see…" Ghirahim was getting too close now, "it's better to just kill them now as it will save us all the trouble."

No, there had to be a way out of this. He wasn't going to hurt his friends, there had to be… something he could still do…

But that was just it, what could he do at the moment? Again, he found himself powerless and at the mercy of the one being who had dragged him into this mess in the first place. He didn't trust himself to respond, he already knew how pathetic he looked and felt, inside and outside, and he didn't want Ghirahim to hear him sound that way either.

"No?" The demon lord inclined his head slightly, "You want to see them suffer?"

Link's back suddenly hit one of the diamond walls and he jumped in alarm out of instinct as he turned to see what it was and quickly realized he was trapped. He turned back to the demon lord to see a palm slam into the wall beside his head.

"Let me ask you something, Link, and I expect an answer this time." Ghirahim leered down at him, "Do you still believe there is a way out?"

Link's blue eyes widened as he pressed himself further back. Behind him, the bird statue stood about fifteen feet away – escape cruelly dangled right in front of his face. But he knew he couldn't leave anyways because Karane and Pipit were still out of commission.

The hero didn't respond, though the answer was clear as crystal to both of them.

But this time, Ghirahim wouldn't let his silence go so easily, he narrowed his eyes dangerously and hissed.

"I'm waiting, hero."

Link knew that answering was inevitable, so he might as well just give Ghirahim what he wanted to hear. What was the point in fighting against something that was true?

"…No."

"No what?"

He bit his lip, looking away, disbelieving that he had been forced to submit yet again.

"No… there is no way out."

Ghirahim withdrew, satisfied, but not before something was thrust into Link's hand – the Master Sword.

"Good," the demon lord said, "so finish them."

When Link looked forward again, Ghirahim wasn't anywhere in sight. His eyes darted around, searching for any signs of his enemy, but nothing. He was alone – no, that wasn't entirely true, he could still feel the ominous presence of the demon in the air and then he understood. Ghirahim was testing him, seeing if he would obey and do what he'd been told to do. If he would actually…

His eyes fell on Pipit and Karane, still lying motionless by another diamond barrier some distance away.

Kill them.

No, no! He couldn't do that, he couldn't kill his friends and he couldn't spill innocent blood on the sacred blade.

But what choice did he have? What would Ghirahim do if he didn't end them now?

He found himself approaching them, unable (or just unwilling) to imagine what would happen to them at the hands of the demon lord and unable to think of anything else to do. He felt weaker as he drew nearer, not physically but emotionally as the stress of the situation bore down on him, unrelenting.

Goddesses, was he really about to go through with it?

Tiredly, he raised the hilt of the Master Sword, calling on the only being that could give him any sort of guidance.

"Please, help me, Fi."

On cue, she responded, speaking into his mind instead of appearing outside of the blade herself.

"Master, I…" a pause, "I cannot come up with an effective conclusion that would suit you."

A new dread filled him. Even his strategically companion couldn't come up with a solution.

"The probability of escaping the current situation under these circumstances is a little under six percent…" she continued, her melodic voice echoing in his head.

He closed his eyes briefly, exhaling before opening them again.

"What do I do…?" He was almost afraid to ask for fear of the obvious answer.

"There is only one suggestion I can currently give, though its success rate is dangerously low. Attempt to rouse Pipit and Karane and stand against Ghirahim once more. However, this is incredibly risky and could only make the situation worse, so I do not recommend it."

He considered that for a moment, drawing closer to his two unmoving friends until he came to a stop. He didn't know what to do, sure he could try what Fi had suggested, but like she said, it could only make matters worse. He didn't want Karane and Pipit to die… but also didn't want to see them tortured to death…

He fell to his knees in front of Pipit, sword clanking against the tile lightly.

Reaching out, he gently shook his friend's shoulder, but no response, so he tried Karane as well. They didn't stir, he even tried softly calling their names. He gritted his teeth together, trying to get a hold on the emotions that threated to bubble to the surface.

This was it then. It was either kill them quickly now or witness them slowly die.

And he'd already made his choice. His hold on the sacred blade held in his hand tightened as well as the constricting feeling around his chest. He felt absolutely sickened just thinking what he was about to do, sickened with himself for not being strong enough to get all of them out of this and sickened with himself for getting into this in the first place.

Raising the blade slowly, sudden movement caught his attention. Pipit's eyes fluttered open and he let out a small groan before fixing his blue eyes on his friend.

"…Link?"

Link's arm fell back down, catching himself, realizing just what he was intending to do. His heart was pounding in his chest, he both looked and felt like he was about to throw up.

"Fuck… fuck…" He wrapped his arms around himself and dropped his head down. Pipit pushed himself up and grabbed Link by the shoulders reassuringly.

"Link, just calm down, we'll find a way out of this..." He looked around, searching for both the demon that could quite possibly be nearby and also for... "Karane!"

Pipit reached beside him to gently shake the fallen girl by the shoulder. She moaned, slowly opening her eyes in a daze before blinking and pushing herself up.

"I'm alright…" Karane said, pressing a hand to her forehead. After a few moments, she braced her hand on the diamond wall and forced herself to stand, "We can't go to that bird statue, but I think I saw another one down there…" she said, gesturing down the slope that led down the side of the volcano.

"But how are we supposed to get past these walls?" Pipit replied, getting up himself and also helping Link to his feet.

"We can use the grappling claw thing but Link…" she turned back and looked at the young hero, who looked deeply troubled, "Link, are you okay?"

"You're taking an awfully long time, sky child, change your mind?" An incredibly hated voice spoke out, making them tense with annoyance, alarm, and dread. The two senior students searched around for the source, finally spotting Ghirahim atop the lone pillar that stood in front of the temple entrance. They immediately backed away as he hopped down and landed a short distance away from the three.

"Oh, and you two…" he said, snapping his fingers as he straightened up. Karane and Pipit jumped as two small domes formed around them, trapping and imprisoning them. "Stop running around."

Karane beat against the wall with unbidden frustration, "Link, attack him!" she yelled, voice slightly muffled by the force field.

Ghirahim shot her a glare as he strode by to get to Link, who didn't even make an effort to harm the demon lord as he neared.

"Tell me, girl, are you blind or just stupid? Does he look like he's in any condition to fight a being such as me?" he questioned, circling around so that he was behind the young hero. One gloved hand gently rested on the top of his blonde head, and still, Link didn't move… but why?

"Such a good boy, he knows he can't win," Ghirahim sneered, the vexation rolling off of them was highly amusing to him, "so don't get your hopes up because he won't even try."

Karane and Pipit decided to ignore him for now, instead focusing on their friend, who appeared to be rendered despondent.

"Link! Please, you have to fight! You have your sword, you can harm him!" Karane said.

"You're not just going to take that, are you?" Pipit added.

Ghirahim merely scoffed, not seeing the hidden light flicker in the hero's blue eyes.

"I told you he's…" he stopped himself, having to dodge a sudden swing from the blade of evil's bane, "…really pushing it."

The demon lord fixed Link with a glare, receiving a hard look in return – something resembling defiance, which would be dealt with accordingly.

"So I see you've made your choice…" a smile twisted his features and sudden fear gripped Link, "how fun this will be."

Link knew he had to do something, and he had to do it now. It was either end Ghirahim or… it was just the end. He reacted almost instantly, rushing forward as best he could, the fatigue weighing him down but nevertheless he took another slice at the demon lord.

A snap and a familiar black sword materialized, easily clashing with and knocking back the sacred blade. A fist shot out and connected solidly with the hero's gut and he doubled over with a choked gasp. Ghirahim continued speaking as if Link's little last stand meant nothing, which it did to him at least. Karane and Pipit looked on with dismay.

"Hm… shame, I can't decide who to start with…" Ghirahim paid minimal heed to the teen on his knees and coughing his lungs out, turning back to the other two imprisoned humans, "What do you think, Link?"

The teen managed to raise his head, "Get away from them… Please, I'll do whatever you want, but just… don't hurt them."

"Whatever I want?" Ghirahim raised a brow, "What if I said I wanted you to tell me where the little Goddess is hiding out? Then maybe I will let them go…" Strong emphasis on maybe.

Link opened his mouth, unsure of what to say, but he was cut off before he even got the chance to speak.

"Link, don't tell him anything!" Pipit said, "Look, it doesn't matter what happens to us, you have to help Zelda, got that?"

He fixed his gaze on Link and waited for the hero to nod back, confused as to how Pipit knew. The most painful part was that it was true – no matter what happened, he couldn't let Ghirahim get to Zelda.

Said demon lord rolled his eyes, becoming increasingly annoyed at the constant heroics being so idiotically displayed before him. In one swift motion he brought down the barrier surrounding Pipit, the senior student didn't even register the five daggers piercing his body until he hit the ground, crying out in pain, flecks of blood splashing against the tile. The next second, Link turned out to be the one trapped in a dome of diamonds before he could even blink.

"Well…" Ghirahim said lazily as he approached the fallen student desperately trying to rise to his feet and get away, "at least I know who to start with now."

"Wait!" Link yelled, trying to push against the barriers to the effect of trying to move a boulder with your bare hands, "Wait, stop… I'll do it…" he rested his forehead on the wall in defeat.

Ghirahim gave a snort, "Oh now you want to," he threw a smug look over his shoulder, "Sorry, sky child, but you made your choice already. And now it looks like your friend will have to suffer the consequences."

Pipit screamed as the first slash came down. Then the next, and the next.

Karane and Link could only watch helplessly as the scene unfolded before them as a morbid pattern began to form: slash, scream, slash, repeat… Their friend was dying and there was nothing they could do to stop him from being hacked away at. They watched in numb, horrified silence, too frozen to look away…

* * *

><p>Long after the sharp howls of pain had died down to pleading whimpers, Link and Karane had been pushed past the point of sanity. Karane was already sobbing hopelessly and Link just didn't move at all. The Master Sword still in hand, he didn't bother to attempt to break the barrier. He tried, but even with Ghirahim's slightly weakened state, the walls still didn't cave. It was useless.<p>

Once or twice, either of them would look expectantly to the sky, waiting for some sort of miracle rescue or something equally as far-fetched… but nothing did.

So then… was it over? It was clear that they weren't getting out of this so should he just give up?

Give up…

That option seemed highly reasonable at this point. He couldn't take this, it wasn't physical torture but seeing one of his best friends being slaughtered before him probably did more damage than the bite of Ghirahim's blade ever could. He was never going to forget this. But not just that, all of the events that had happened over the past few days. That kind of damage was irreversible.

But then he remembered Zelda… his mission… he couldn't just abandon that, could he? He couldn't abandon her.

Then, damn it! What on earth did he do?

His eyes were drawn to the blade held in his hands. If he were to…

"Finish him off. He's still alive, but barely, he'll bleed out slowly if you don't do something."

A voice cut through his thoughts. He slowly turned his head back to see Ghirahim standing not two feet in front of the barrier he was trapped behind. His gut twisted as he processed the words, eyes widening up at the demon lord who stepped aside and revealed a gruesome sight he never wanted to see in his life. Blood, twisted limbs and torn muscle ligaments made up from what was formerly known as Pipit of the knight academy – there was no way he could still be alive.

Yet he was; the rise and fall of his chest was faint, but it was there. Death might not be so bad after all.

"Come now, Link, you're going to let your friend suffer through the remnants of his life? He could bleed for days. You might as well just put him out of his misery," Ghirahim gave an evil smile, "because I certainly won't."

With those words in mind, the dome-like barrier around Link vanished. The hero found himself practically dragging himself towards Pipit's form, barely realizing what he was doing. In some spot in his mind, he knew Ghirahim was telling the truth and Pipit was in terrible pain. And… he had to do something to end it.

As he approached, he saw Pipit's eyes fix on him, distant and glazed. The sheer amount of blood pooling out of him was astounding. Link saw him give a small nod and his throat constricted. No… there had to be a way to heal him… potions, something… This couldn't be it. But there was nothing, Link soon realized that it really would be better to end him right now rather than leave him to suffer. It would be an act of mercy…

Karane was holding her breath, covering her mouth as she looked away. Both knights were thinking along the same lines.

'_This cannot be happening.'_

Then it was over the next second, blessed steel sunk into flesh and Pipit was still.

It didn't hit until seconds later, that his friend was dead and by his own hand. The reality of what he just did sunk in with excruciating slowness. Thoughts of turmoil instantly began to spill into his mind, though he found it was a little hard to think with the hilt of an onyx blade slamming right between his eyes.

"Good boy."

He only managed to catch a flash of a malicious smirk before all dissolved into nothing.

* * *

><p>Blazing heat, confusion and a monster of a headache awaited Karane when she came to. All was considerably quiet, except for a faint, monotonous bubbling noise that she hardly noticed. Her cheek was pressed to her hand which was pressed against something metal with gaps in it. It was almost burning to the touch.<p>

Given the current situation, it took the female Skyloftian to register just what had happened and where she was. An image of Ghirahim swinging the hilt of his onyx sabre at her flashed through her mind – that was right before she was knocked out so…

With a small, incoherent mumble she opened her eyes to see her fingers dangling over a considerably wise expanse of lava a short distance down. For an instant she thought she was falling and immediately shot up in panic. It was when the shooting pain hit her temple from the sudden action that she realized that no, she was indeed not falling, but resting on a grate that prevented the aforementioned fall.

She moaned, pressing a hand to her forehead and wincing, fingers brushing the angry bruise that had taken form there. Whilst the throbbing in her temples died down, another thing became apparent… her right ankle had considerably more pressure on it then her left…

She looked back to inspect it, only for her eyes to widen. An iron shackle was clasped around her ankle, trapped to a chain connected to the middle of the grate. Surveying the area, a sinking feeling began to set in her stomach as she finally got a good look at her surroundings.

The chamber was vast and circular. In the middle there was a grate which rested over the lava she'd awoken to which seemed to be in a separate chamber below, the outer edges of the room were just regular floor. She pushed herself to her feet with some effort, backing off of the grate as she didn't feel very safe on it. Glancing up, she soon came to notice that the chamber also had a very, very high ceiling. Karane could see another structure of metal bars covering part of the roof and beyond those… the night sky. Freedom.

Her brow furrowed, it was nightfall already.

Had they really been here that long?

A flash of fear and horror suddenly overtook her as the earlier events rushed back, her eyes widening as she remembered what had happened to… to…

The back of her eyes began to burn and her throat clenched. No, no… that couldn't have happened. She refused to believe it. Link would be fine. Pipit would be fine.

Then she gasped in alarm.

_Link!_

_Pipit!_

Goddess, where were they? She whirled, no one here but her. She looked up, nothing. Her panic rose along with her terror, afraid for what had become of her two friends and afraid for what would become of her.

No… this couldn't be it, could it?

Suddenly she froze, what was that? A cackle? A snicker?

She searched frantically for the source of the sound, surprised to look up and see a bokoblin on a ledge high above her head. Her dread increased tenfold. There wasn't just one, but many started appearing on the outer ledges near the roof of the chamber, a few sneered down at her. Others mocked and some gave little shrieking laughs in their high pitched voices. She crouched in a ready stance (not that it would do much to help her) and glanced around warily. Finally, her eyes rested on him.

The demon lord of the Surface met her apprehensive gaze with a menacing, though slightly amused, one. He resided on the highest ledge with arms crossed, then he raised a hand and waggled his fingers at her in a short, silent and taunting, wave. She bit her lip nervously, something bad was about to happen and she just knew it. A few shouts from above then caught her attention.

A few bokoblins seemed to be… dragging something out. She squinted to see what it was, then reared back in utter, soul-gripping, horror. The thing was thrown out to the middle of the floor, landing on the grate with a sickening splat sound. Blood dripped from the form and down through the metal, falling into the lava below with a few faint splashes. She covered her mouth, eyes wide, breathing coming in small gasps as she recognized the disfigured corpse. Even through the stained, russet coloured tunic, she instantly knew who it was.

But it hardly looked anything like Pipit any more. So much blood, broken bones, twisted joints…

She fell to her knees, unable to bring herself to get a closer look, the sight of one of her dearest friend in that state was too much. At the moment, she didn't care who was watching, tears were running down her face before she could stop herself and she buried her head in her hands.

The bokoblins gave heartless chortles of laughter at her reaction, before deciding that the real fun should begin soon.

Karane snapped her head up as she heard something high above – a harsh, grating sound… like a switch being thrown. That sinking feeling returned, tenfold. Still shaky from the jarring sight of Pipit's disfigured and broken body, she carefully stood and backed away towards the wall, glancing around with unease. It didn't seem like anything was happening… at least not at first. Upon closer inspection she came to notice something very unsettling.

That… that lava hadn't been that high before, right?

It had to be a mistake. The senior student took a closer look down into the grate and her eyes widened. No, it wasn't a mistake; the molten rock really was rising. She watched with growing trepidation as the surface climbed higher… towards the point where Pipit's body rested.

Oh no…

Then it began to bubble past the grate and she had to avert her eyes with a quiet whimper. A terrible hissing noise filled the air, she tried to block it out but then the acrid smell hit her nose and she nearly threw up. She covered her mouth and nose with her arm and let out a few sobs, horrified beyond belief.

But then, from the corner of her eye she saw the liquid rock leave its initial target and reach its greedy clutches past the grate, spilling across the floor to get to its next victim.

Which was her.

She nearly froze, terror gripping her. She stepped back, her foot bumping against something. The wall was lined with half broken ledges that jutted out from the stone from top to bottom. Breaking from her fear spell momentarily, she forced herself to pull herself up and onto one right before the lava reached the spot she had been moments before. But it didn't stop there; slowly it continued its steady journey upwards and Karane soon realized that if she didn't move again, she was as good as dead. Or would be dead.

The bokoblins screeched in excitement, watching her evade the lava by reaching for another ledge and swinging herself up. And then another and another as the fiery, molten rock rose a little faster. Fingers gripping for a hold, she managed to pull herself up to higher ground, but she barely had twenty seconds to rest. The complete bottom of the chamber was covered. If she fell now, it was all over. Heart pounding, she frantically searched for the next hold when she soon came to find that it wasn't in reach. The heat was getting to her, making her head spin and breathe heavily. She glanced from the gradually nearing lava to the walls, finally spotting something that could help her.

It was either stand still and get burned or take her chances with the holds that had been made in the stone of the chambers crumbling walls. With the lava no less than ten feet away, she grabbed the first hold and scaled the side of the chamber diagonally, only acting, not thinking of the boiling rock waiting to cook her alive… definitely not thinking of that…

Her foot suddenly slipped on the next indent of the rock, sending small stones to tumble into the lava with small splashes that sounded unnervingly close. She yelped, panic seizing her muscles as she clung on for dear life. A round of excited hoots came from above, the bokoblins sure she was going to fall, or the lava would outrun her – whichever came first.

Karane felt the stone under her right hand begin to come apart from the rest of the wall, she shrieked and furiously reached for another hold, thawing out of her frozen state and continuing the climb. The bokoblins made noises of disappointment. She frantically pulled herself up to the next ledge, but sudden cold fear that greatly contrasted the intense heat of the volcano gripped her.

She was being held back; the chain had reached the end of its length and she could go no further, yet the lava still rose…

Clawing desperately for a hold, she almost instantly slipped into panic mode, half on the ledge and half dangling precariously over the rapidly rising molten rock. Unable to stop herself, she screamed in terror and distress, much to the entertainment of the bokoblins above who let out loud shrieking laughs.

This was it then, she was done. The senior student didn't look down, not desiring to see her death approaching. She kicked at the shackle, but it didn't budge an inch. Left to hang in the face of death for her last few painful moments, she waited for the end to come… thinking of Pipit and thinking of Link.

And trying not to think of how painful death by lava would be.

* * *

><p>Link was watching from above, he'd seen the whole thing – not that he could look away. He'd wanted desperately to call out to Karane, but when he opened his mouth, no words came out. What would be the point anyways? What could he possibly say that could help her out?<p>

Now she was trapped and awaiting the rising lava to consume her.

The urge to avert his eyes was so great, yet he was frozen solid in stark horror. The grip on his hair didn't help at all.

A low chuckle was heard from beside him. He was on his knees on the same ledge of the demon lord, overlooking the scene, watching as the fiery molten rock inched closer and closer… Vaguely, he was reminded of the Mogma that had attempted to rescue him, half-charred, dangling with its innards spilling out – the result of a painful and drawn out death. The mere memory of that was enough to nearly force up his gorge once again, the unpleasant urge to vomit rising as he realized that the same fate awaited Karane.

Finally he made his eyes close and attempted to look away.

Ghirahim growled, "No. You will watch this time."

Link felt his head being roughly shaken and his eyes opened on instinct before he was forced to look down again. He let out a quiet whimper.

Then the lava stopped rising only inches from the tip of Karane's shackled boot. She was still screaming, though it was gradually shifting from being screams of terror to being actual screams of pain. Link soon realized that though the lava wasn't touching her, she was still being burned by the sheer proximity of its heat. And it wasn't rising yet, so she was going to be cooked before actually _being_ cooked. The bokoblins howled in mirth.

Ghirahim leaned over and pretended to look concerned, "Hm… I wonder how long she can last like that…" he grinned, glancing down at the near traumatised hero, "We'll just have to see, won't we?"

Karane's screaming escalated in volume before she clamped her mouth shut and dropped her head to the stone underneath her, gritting her teeth at the deep burns opening up all along her lower legs.

Link felt Ghirahim lightly rest his head on top of his, "Same as before, Link, you give me the information I need now and we cut your suffering short." He muttered while playing with a strand of his hair, absentmindedly winding it around his finger before shrugging, "Or in this case, hers. So what do you say?"

Link was distraught. Of course he didn't want to see any more of this. But again, he held his tongue, though some voice, deep in the back of his mind, was screaming just to give the demon what he wanted and that would be it. This would all be over.

'Tell him, you know you can't take much more of this. What's the point?' It said, and worst of all, he almost believed it for a moment.

He remained silent, partially out of the fact that he didn't want to sell out Zelda like that and partially because his current mental state prevented any words from coming out of his mouth. Ghirahim took it as a 'no.'

The demon lord bristled with anger, removing himself from his position of casually leaning on the hero's head and tightening the hold on his hair.

"_Unbelievable."_ He seethed, not even bothering to put up an act of joviality this time, "I'm honestly amazed at how much you can put up with, though I suppose I should expect nothing less from you, Chosen Hero." He hissed, "If nothing is getting through to you, then I may start to consider you a lost cause…"

He tugged Link's head back, practically etching his glare into the youth's memory, "And I don't see much of a point in keeping something so useless alive."

The bokoblins anxiously waited for the orders to throw the switch and raise the lava, sealing Karane's fate. The demon lord began to raise his hand for the signal…

But then, a low rumbling bubbled up from deep beneath the lava, making Ghirahim stop, mid-raise, and narrow his eyes down suspiciously. The bokoblins peered down in confusion, blinking and scratching their ugly heads. It could've been just one of the natural reactions from the volcano, but the sound kept building, getting louder and louder with each passing second. It was starting to dawn on them that the volcano might just erupt again, which in that case it was better just to high tail it out of there right now. The room was now beginning to shake slightly with each growing rumble.

Then suddenly it grew violent. Karane shrieked as she nearly lost her grip on the ledge, but managed to hold on. A few of the bokoblins cried out in surprise, one even fell off and plummeted to the lava below – it went ignored. Even Ghirahim nearly lost his balance for a second but quickly righted himself, glaring down at the source of the interruption. Ripples were beginning to form in the surface of the molten rock.

It just stopped. Everything went silent, the tremors, the rumbling, everything. A few confused looks were exchanged between the red demons and Ghirahim tilted his head slightly in puzzlement. Link just stared, not knowing what else to do. All was calm and silent.

The spell that had seemed to fall over the room shattered as the surface of the lava exploded the next second, chunks of fiery rock flying everywhere and nearly hitting Karane in the process. A shape burst out of the bottom of the chamber, having easily torn through the grating some distance below. The girl clinging to the rock cried out again before hesitantly turning her gaze up with awe-struck eyes.

Dragon-god Eldin made his entrance, rocketing into the air and taking everyone by surprise before arching his flight back down and seizing the senior student up into a mighty claw. The chain connected to the shackle snapped easily and she was free.

The demon lord was the first to snap out of the shock brought on by the sudden appearance. He let out a snarl of frustration and something else before snapping his rapier to his hand, fully prepared to end the dragon's existence at once. He made a signal for his hordes to load their bows and fire and they hastily scrambled to obey his command.

Eldin easily brushed away the petty arrows and charged to the high up ledge where Link and Ghirahim were. The flowing lava-like patterns on his skin began to move in reverse before a strong jet of scalding hot magma was propelled from his mouth and straight at the demon lord. Link recovered from his gawking soon enough to throw himself to the side.

Ghirahim growled and teleported out of the way, reappearing on another ledge nearby, already crouched to attack. He did just that, springing forward with a shout of pure rage. Eldin turned, countering with a swipe of the tail and sending the demon to smash into the opposite wall of the chamber with a loud grunt – a lucky hit. Not wasting any time, the great dragon grabbed Link as well. With both Skyloftians in his arms, he soared upwards. He wasn't there to take on Ghirahim and his hordes and they had to leave at once.

The only thing that stood in the way of freedom was the grate overhead where one could see the night sky high above. Ignoring the angry shouts and arrows from the aggravated bokoblins, the dragon and the two humans shot towards their exit, another blast of magma from Eldin was all it took to clear the way. They burst out of the volcano, through the rock and into the open.

Just like that. Gone. Out.

Free.

It all happened too fast for Link to process. He had really… escaped?

Nothing could describe how immensely bewildered he was. He glanced to Karane across from him, her expression was pained and she had her hands clutched around one of her badly burned legs where the material of her attire was charred. But she was alive at least.

They had escaped… though not all of them.

His eyelids lowered in sorrow, but he could barely think at the moment, much less grieve. He was far too tired...

They rapidly gained altitude, speeding away from the volcano and higher into the sky. Soon, all that was visible from Eldin Volcano was the orange glow of lava it gave off. Not much more of the province was visible because it was so dark and they were so high up. The dragon slowed to a gentle cruise after a few minutes, allowing the very shocked humans to catch their breath.

But Link found himself drifting off despite himself, he was absolutely exhausted. Everything felt detached, like it wasn't even there…

But through the haze of growing unconsciousness, something burst through – a last thought, a sudden realization.

"Fi!" Link suddenly blurted, eyes flying open, remembering his sword companion. If she was still down there…

"_Right here, Master."_ A soft, melodic voice spoke and moments later she appeared, floating alongside them. Her form gleamed in the moonlight that shone down through the clouds. He gave her a completely dumbstruck look, opening his mouth to form a response, but Fi beat him to it.

"_If I may make a suggestion, Master,"_ she said, _"you are tired, it would most likely benefit you to just rest right now. We will be returning to the sky momentarily."_

He found it rather easy to agree with her words, his eyes sliding closed again, but not before catching a faint, reassuring smile on her regularly blank face.

The wind rushing past them was the last thing he heard before falling into darkness.

* * *

><p>Bokoblins may not have been the brightest of creatures, but they had key instinct. And that key instinct would be the difference between life or death for them.<p>

For instance, if they wished to die at the moment – for whatever reason – then approaching their lord would most certainly be the way to go.

Ghirahim was glowering up at the opening in the roof where the three had escaped. His exterior didn't show it, but he was actually very dumbstruck on the inside. He wasn't in the right mind to comprehend what had just happened, all he knew was that Link – his object of torture – had escaped, and now someone was about to die.

The bokoblins let out tiny squeaks as he turned his glare on them. He knew that killing them would hardly grant him any satisfaction, but his blade wanted blood and it didn't matter whose it was at the moment. Just so long as he got it.

He sunk the black steel into the closest one, ripping through the second and third, and not stopping until his anger was quelled a fraction.

Vaguely, he supposed that he really didn't have anyone to blame but himself. As much as he hated to admit it, he himself had gotten over confident. He should have taken more care when facing Eldin, should've killed the bloody snake when he had the chance…

He realized with chagrin that the sword spirit had spoken the truth somewhat…

With a derisive snort, he kicked a bokoblin corpse off the ledge to fall into the lava below before turning back to the rest, who looked terrified.

"All of you get out of my sight," he ordered and they scrambled to obey, more than eager to get away from him. Soon the chamber was empty. He snapped his fingers to teleport out, tired of the heat, and reappeared at the summit of the volcano.

Such a shame that Link had left before he'd broken, so close too… Hm, disappointing indeed.

The question remained, what to do now? He smirked, knowing that he'd have no issue recapturing Link, the little hero could never truly escape him. Still, it was annoying knowing that those three days spent teasing and toying with the boy may have gone to waste if he could recover fast enough…

But Ghirahim seriously doubted that he would. If Link honestly could pull himself back together from that then the boy deserved a medal for his spirit, or a sword through the head. The latter sounded particularly enticing.

Then a voice reminded him of his mission: resurrecting his master. Ah, right, finding the girl and using her to bring back the demon king. That was at his list of top priorities, torturing Link was not.

He scowled… did he actually just forget that for a second?

Huh… for a moment, he actually let his obsession with the sky child get in the way of his judgement.

That thought made him stop for a minute. Him? Obsessive? _No…_

He rolled his eyes at the ridiculous notion.

But still, he needed that information… and torturing Link some more seemed like the sure-fire way to get it. However, this time he thought he should go about it a somewhat different way…

"You will never truly escape me, boy," he muttered with a sly grin, "our thread of fate had brought us together numerous times before and it can bring us together again."


	10. Chapter 10 Home Sweet Home

A small moan left Link's mouth as he shifted in his sleep. His eyelids fluttered a bit as he was gradually stirred from unconsciousness. Everything felt… comfortable and soft in stark contrast to what previous conditions he'd awoken to. He snuggled deeper into the warmth of the blankets, not wanting to rise. This felt too good…

Wait, blankets?

Slowly his eyes opened and he was greeted with the sight of… a wall. He blinked, feeling groggy and disoriented. Where was he exactly?

"Link?" A voice caught his attention.

He looked over to see Karane sitting nearby with a concerned look on her face, though it flashed to relief.

"You're awake," she said. He made himself sit up with some effort, taking notice of how his stomach and throat felt like they had turned inside out. He gave a weak groan that turned to a cough.

"Wh-where…" he tried to say, but his voice choked off. Karane nevertheless understood what he'd meant, "We're at the Lumpy Pumpkin now. Umm… Eldin dropped us off here."

Now that he took a glance around the room, he realized she was right. It was one of the vacant upstairs rooms in the Lumpy Pumpkin – bed, table, drawer – nothing really of interest. Sunlight streamed in through the lone window, giving away the time of day. He swallowed, trying to force down the dryness in his throat but not having much luck. The events prior to his awakening were somewhat of a jumble but they gradually fell into their rightful spots in his memory. Yet he found that the more he recalled, the more he'd like to forget.

He dropped his head into his hands. That didn't really happen, did it? It had to have been… a nightmare. Yes, a nightmare. That would explain everything from the three days of imprisonment to…

"Hey," he felt a hand on his shoulder as he looked to see Karane giving him a sympathetic expression, although the sadness in her eyes told him she was thinking the same thing. "It's alright now."

No, it wasn't. How could it be alright after all that had happened? Maybe if he'd just been stronger or tried harder, then he might have gotten them all out alive. But no, he didn't and now he'd lost one of his closest friends besides Zelda… not only that but he'd been forced to kill Pipit himself. How on earth could he _ever_ forget that?

He let out a heavy breath. Nothing could be done about it now, he supposed, so there was no point in dwelling on it.

The empty feeling in the pit of his stomach was becoming too much for him to ignore as the room spun and he felt like he was on the verge of blacking out. At that moment, the door to the room opened and Kina chose to walk in, carrying a tray of…

Food.

Link's mind temporarily went blank as the pain in his stomach increased threefold. The full force of his hunger hit him right there. He hadn't been fed at all

during his three days in captivity. That and combined with the copious amounts of blood he had lost along with running around thinking he was getting closer to escape made him really wonder how the hell he was still alive.

"Oh good, he's up," Kina said with relief as she set the tray in front of him and needless to say, manners were not of the utmost priority. The pumpkin soup, fresh bread, and deku-fruit juice disappeared at such an alarming rate down the hero's throat that Kina and Karane exchanged a concerned glance.

Part of it was the worry that it might come back up just as fast. A familiar ringing sounded out and moments later, Fi materialized from the hilt of the Master Sword that lay at the foot of the bed.

_"Master... I understand your current condition requires immediate sustenance but I'm afraid that if you ingest that fast, you will only succeed in making yourself sick."_

Link downed the remainder of the deku-fruit juice, feeling stronger already, although what she said was true and his stomach was beginning to cramp. He ignored it and looked at her.

"I'm fine." He found it easier to speak now, though his voice was still a little hoarse.

Kina took the tray as she threw a kind and sympathetic smile over her shoulder before leaving the three alone, the door shutting with a click behind her. A semi-awkward silence fell over the room.

Link took the time to notice that someone had redressed him; he was in a simple shirt and pants now. He was guessing that his other clothes had probably been pretty… unwearable. He looked back at Karane and Fi, voicing a question nagging at his mind.

"What happened exactly?" It was aimed more at Fi. He still didn't how she had managed to do that –being able to find Eldin and rescuing them at the last possible second. Fi opened her mouth and began to explain. She didn't find the dragon; the dragon had found her by a lucky stroke and some very unlucky bokoblins pawning through Link's items. She'd quickly briefed Eldin in, retrieved Link's stuff and then rescued him and Karane at the most critical moment.

Link had to commend her for her resourcefulness sometimes. If it weren't for her, then he probably would still be down there… enduring who knows what. He shuddered, and then remembered something.

"Where is Eldin now?" he asked, remembering his mission. He still needed the song part and he really did not want to make another journey back down to the volcano for obvious reasons.

"If I'm correct, he should still be around. He informed me that he would wait until you had recovered enough to learn the song."

Link sighed in relief at that. At least it was one less thing to worry about.

He cast a glance at Karane who appeared to be far away with a distant look in her eye.

"Karane, are you alright…?" he tentatively asked. She blinked and shook her head a few times as if coming out of a daze.

"Huh? Oh... yeah, just…" she said, voice dull with detachment. Link knew what she was thinking about. "I should be asking you that."

"I'll be fine," he replied, then lowered his gaze, staring at his hands. "I'm really sorry about… about Pipit."

Pipit was one of his closest friends next to Zelda, he was like an older brother almost. An image of him with the Master Sword stuck in his chest flashed through Link's mind and he cringed inwardly, painfully reminded of how he'd been forced to kill him. A wave of nausea came over him and he had to fight his hardest to hold down the food he'd just been given.

"You had no choice, there was nothing that could be done," Karane said, shaking her head slightly. "Link, are you sure you're really okay?"

Link nodded and moved to push himself off the bed, but a hand stopped him. Karane pushed him gently back down, shaking her head, "No, after all you've been through, you need the rest. Don't worry about the dragon, he won't be going anywhere."

Link looked up at her, frowning slightly, "What about Skyloft?"

"Don't worry about it. I'm going to make a visit there right now," she said, standing up and heading to the door. She threw a glance over her shoulder and pointed at him, "Stay in bed, okay?" With that, she disappeared out the door and Link was left alone. Well, not exactly alone since Fi was still floating by

him.

"I think it would be wise and you would benefit from doing as she says," Fi informed him. He sighed and reluctantly lay back down. She was right. After that whole ordeal, it was probably best that he should just get all the rest he could…

…

_ One last cry escaped his throat before he slumped forward, the chains releasing their grip on his wrists. He fell face-first to the floor, breathing heavily as his vision faded in and out. He had no strength to move. The pain was unbearable as his entire backside felt like it was on fire. Warmth was dripping down his back and he assumed that it looked like a bloody, torn mess. He clenched his teeth, trying to suppress the sounds of agony trying to push past his lips. His eyelids were slowly drooping and he welcomed the oncoming wave of darkness, wanting to escape the treatment he was receiving._

_"Now now, we can't have you pass out too early now, can we?"_

_Link groaned as he felt his arms raised above his head and he was forced to sit on his knees. Two chains clamped around his wrists once more and locked him in that position. He brought his gaze up to glower at the demon lord standing in front of him, a contemptuous grin on the face of his enemy. _

_"That must be very uncomfortable for you…"_

_Link snarled in response, provoking a jeering laugh from Ghirahim._

_"Temper temper… and I was just going to ask if you wanted me to heal you." He chuckled, then knelt down before Link, whip still in hand. "So, sky child, _

_do you want me to heal you or shall we continue regardless?"_

_"I'm not going to beg you," Link spat back at him, trying to ignore the searing pain overloading his senses._

_Ghirahim then grabbed the boy by his chin and got very close to his face, looking him dead in the eye._

_"Oh, are you sure? Well, have it your way then."_

_He then released him and stepped back, "I suppose we can continue this either way though…"_

_He raised the whip again and Link shut his eyes, bracing himself for what was sure to come…_

"Stop!" Link jerked upwards, then immediately cringed at the searing pain the action brought. "Oww…" he moaned and clutched at his back. Why on earth did it still hurt…?

Gritting his teeth, he panted, body drenched in a cold sweat. Slowly the pain ebbed and the scars throbbing ceased after a short while. Had he woken anyone up? All was silent so that would be a resounding 'no.' He sat there, unmoving before slowly falling back to the bed and covering his face with his hands. It was nighttime judging by the dark sky visible through the window and the faint sound of Karane's snoring next door. He let out a sigh.

Great, so he was already having nightmares about the whole thing? Disturbingly vivid nightmares, too. How fun.

Well, there was no way he was getting back to sleep now unless he wanted to face repeated visions of taking beatings from his own whip again.

His heart was still pounding and everything felt claustrophobic in the room he was currently occupying. He'd been inside all day, he needed some air.

Throwing the covers off and pushing himself off the bed, he started towards the door, only to stop himself as a sudden thought crossed his mind. He then turned back around and headed towards the bed, stopping and kneeling down to pawn around his adventure pouch. He sifted through the items until he got what he was looking for, pulling out the shiny gold Goddess Lyre before standing to leave again.

Link silently crept downstairs to the empty main area of the pub. He cast a glance up at the ceiling (sans chandelier that had previously hung there) before opening and closing the front door, slipping out quietly. The night air was cool and refreshing on his skin, he made his way over to the diving platform on the little island, not intending to jump off though. Instead, he stared into the sky at the floating landmass that was Skyloft. Link vaguely wondered why

Eldin hadn't just brought them to Skyloft in the first place but then realized that the dragon probably wanted to be kept a secret as much as possible. After all, they were only supposed to be legends. At least, that was his reasoning.

Karane had said sometime earlier that the people had eradicated all of the remaining monsters and were recovering, but that didn't stop him from being concerned. Something felt… ominous about it. He couldn't place it, but somehow found himself wondering how long it would remain safe…

"Awfully late for a midnight stroll, especially when one such as yourself should be resting," a voice scolded good-naturedly.

Link nearly jumped out of his skin and turned around, relieved to find it was only Eldin floating leisurely behind him. How the dragon had slipped his notice, he didn't exactly know… especially in an area such as this. Hiding a beast that big seemed impossible.

"Couldn't sleep," Link answered, shrugging.

"Ah, I see. That is understandable considering someone of your predicament…" Eldin floated over so that he was now hovering in front of the island,

"Chosen Hero, I believe I have some apologizing to do."

Link was genuinely confused, "For what?" The dragon had rescued them, so what reason could he possibly have for apologizing?

Eldin sighed and folded his arms in front of him, his dark red kimono swishing a bit in the wind. "I'm afraid the volcanic eruption was caused by an explosion of my powers… It was beyond my control and you were the one to get caught up in it."

Link's eyes widened slightly, the dragon's words sinking in. So… the whole thing… was caused by… Eldin?

"I am truly sorry. It appears that my minor mistake caused some very major events to take place," the dragon continued to apologize.

Link didn't know what to think, whether he should be angry or not. Well, he _was_ angry, but it wasn't necessarily directed at Eldin. The dragon _had _saved them all at the last moment. He couldn't find it in himself to be mad at him.

"Why didn't you do anything sooner?" Link asked with mild irritation, scowling slightly. "You didn't happen to notice the abundance of bokoblins on your territory?" How could that go unnoticed?

"I was preoccupied with trying to get my powers under control..." Eldin shook his head slightly "I don't expect you to forgive me anytime soon but the least I can do is offer my condolences."

Link shook his head, though he still felt bitter inside, "No, it's alright. The situation was out of your control, it wasn't your fault."

The dragon-god seemed to slightly smile.

"I am glad that the Hero chosen by the Goddess has such a noble heart. You've come a long way, young one. Judging by the mark on your hand and harp you carry, you seek the song part entrusted to me by the Goddess." He gestured to Link's hand, where the three triangles were beginning to glow, "I will sing it to you… I just hope no one is awoken because of me," the dragon chuckled.

Link listened closely as Eldin sung his part of the song. The notes echoed around and faded into the darkness of the sky. Link closed his eyes and began to memorize the melody, letting it engrave in his mind for later use. He opened them when everything went silent. Eldin gave a nod after he was done with the song.

"Well, I believe I shall return to my land now and rid myself of the remainder of those pesky bokoblins. Goodbye Hero, and I bid you well on the rest of your journey," he said. Link nodded back.

With that, Eldin flew off towards the red beam of light. Link watched until he disappeared beneath the cloud barrier, still clutching the harp to himself. He plucked a few strings absentmindedly, turning to peer into the distance at the yellow column of light shooting up from the clouds. There was only one more song piece to go… Only one until he had all of the clues to obtain the Triforce and destroy the demon king. And then he would finally be reunited with Zelda.

…

The damage was bad. Really bad. They'd managed to put out the fires and get rid of the remainder of the bokoblins, but it was a bittersweet victory. Practically every structure needed repair and a good number of the knights were lost. Skyloft had been completely ravaged.

Three days had passed since Link had returned to the sky and he felt considerably much more rested and recovered. He spoke to Gaepora briefly about his mission before deciding it was time to set out again. He'd already lost so much time and the quicker he got the last song part, the better. Fi insisted that he stay a little longer to recuperate, but he really just wanted to get this over with. Something just felt… off about the whole thing. He was on edge, and not only because of the reoccurring nightmares he had been having as of late…

It seemed odd that Ghirahim would let him go just like that. The demon lord knew where Skyloft was and it made Link paranoid knowing he could pop in for a visit at any given moment. Why not just attack him in his sleep? Slit his throat? Recapture him?

The young hero bit his lip, knowing the demon lord was capable of any one of those. He'd been extra on guard the past few days. Once or twice, he'd _sworn_ he saw something out of the ordinary, barely noticeable but just noticeable enough – yet nothing had happened. No ambush. Nothing.

That was why he felt he had to leave as soon as he could. Of course he had to move on with his mission, but he also felt that he had to get away from Skyloft. The place was supposed to be a safe retreat after grueling adventures on the Surface, though it was just making him anxious now.

Redressed, reequipped, and ready to go, he made his way over to the diving platform on the island where the Goddess Statue rested. As he was about to take a running start, he heard someone calling his name and paused.

"Link!" He turned to see Karane running towards him. She skidded to a stop right in front of him.

"Karane…?" he said in slight confusion.

"Wait…" she huffed, panting and leaning on her knees, "wait, I want to go with you."

Link looked at her in surprise, blinking. He immediately thought no, she couldn't come with him, and shook his head, "You have to stay here."

Karane straightened up and sighed, "Look, Link, I know about your mission, how you and Zelda are part of some great destiny, and I want to help in any way that I can." She rested a hand on his shoulder, "You don't have to do this alone, you know."

If Link thought about, she could actually be a lot of help. He considered it, but then froze as a thought came to him. What if he ran into Ghirahim again? If he did, then she was dead for sure. He couldn't handle losing another friend. He shook his head once again and declined her proposal, much to her dismay.

"I'm sorry, but I do need to do this by myself," he gave her a small, forced smile. "Don't worry though, I'll be fine, I don't plan on staying down there for over a day. I don't even plan on being gone for more than a few hours."

Karane still gave him a concerned and skeptical look, which told him that he would need to do more convincing.

"Besides, Skyloft needs all the help it can get," he added, gesturing to the town where reconstruction had already begun to take place. She opened her mouth to protest but Link cut her off, "I'll be okay, just trust me."

Karane scowled slightly, not saying anything for a few moments as if contemplating it, then finally sighed and nodded.

"Alright," she said, "but come back, okay?"

Link faintly rolled his eyes and gave her a salute as he turned and jumped off the platform. He whistled after a few seconds of falling into the sky and a mass of scarlet feathers caught him. The Loftwing cawed happily and Link couldn't help but smile a little. He patted his bird's feathers before gripping the reins tightly and soared towards the yellow light that led to Lanayru. He reached the opening in the cloud barrier in less than five minutes.

_'Just go down, find the dragon, get the song part, and come back to Skyloft,'_ he told himself. Simple, it wouldn't take that long.

He bit his lip. That wasn't what was worrying him though. He said the exact same thing before going to Eldin and look what happened then… Now he was immensely paranoid.

Link sighed. Okay, he was just being ridiculous. For one, there were no volcanoes in Lanayru to knock him off course or anything like that. For two, what reason would Ghirahim even have for being in Lanayru anyways? For three, all he had to do was be extra care–

_"Master,"_ a voice said, cutting off his thoughts,_ "You seem troubled."_

Link allowed the slightest edge of sarcasm to slip into his voice, "What would make you say that?"

_"Because we've just passed the entrance to Lanayru and are heading into open sky."_

He blinked, realizing Fi was right, "Oh…" he mumbled, circling around a stray floating piece of rock and back towards the light, "sorry."

He peered down into what he could see of the province, but hesitated. Why? He didn't know. His mind went to the sword on his back and a thought came to him. He narrowed his eyes. If Ghirahim was lurking somewhere down there because the demon really did not have anything better to do, then so be it. He'd be ready.

Fi piped up again, _"Master Link, we do not have to–"_ but Link had already jumped off of his bird and into the sky.


	11. April Fools

The trek through Lanayru was proving to be a more taxing journey than Link had anticipated. He panted, wiping the sweat from his brow with the back of his hand. Maybe he shoulda brought some water… or something… since y'know, it's a motherfucking desert. Finally he made it to the caves, the dragon had to be somewhere through here; this was the only section of Lanayru that hadn't been explored yet. As he proceeded through the caves, a strange chill ran up and down his spine. He froze, oh no… not…

He turned slowly… okay, nevermind. It was only David Bowie. He sighed in relief. For a second he thought that…

Wait a minute…

Oh fuck.

"You seem lost, sky child." Ghirahim purred, slithering out from the shadows like a snake that slithers. Link immediately drew his sword, sheathed it, and drew it again.

"You… what are you doing here?" He growled threateningly. Ghirahim only offered a cruel smirk in return, not bothering to answer since his intentions should have been made clear by now. He strode over to Link, who backed away step for step. Apparently it had slipped his mind that he could just use the Master Sword to skewer the demon's ass faster than he could say 'rainbows.'

Soon his back was against the wall and Fi appeared from the sacred blade, "Master, there is a 300% percent chance something incredibly homoerotic is about to happen and a 2000% chance I will watch it. And enjoy it." She briefly flashed a me gusta face before exploding along with the sword. Now weaponless and incredibly, totally and completely helpless, Link pressed himself flat against the wall, as far away from Ghirahim as he could.

"What…" Link started, before the demon lord reached out and twirled a lock of his hair around his gloved finger, "G-get away from me!" he stammered, turning his head away.

"You know… it just saddened me immensely when you left…" Ghirahim mused lowly, completely ignoring Link as the hero latched onto his arm and started gnawing on it, "We didn't even get to finish our time together, so I guess we'll just have to make up for it now." He suddenly grabbed both of Link's wrists and pinned them to the wall above his head with one hand.

"I'm not telling you where Zelda is so just leave me alone!" The captive hero shouted and Ghirahim shrugged.

"That wasn't what I was talking about but whatever floats your boat."

He seized the hero's jaw with his free hand as he tried to look away, "And do you really think I want _her?"_ he grinned. Link was greatly disturbed by the sensual lilt put into the demon's tone.

"What…? I don't…" he was blushing furiously for some reason. Ghirahim scoffed and flicked his hair out of his face.

"Oh please, sky child, are you really so dense…? Foolish boy…" he crooned, leaning in so close that him and Link's lips were only millimetres apart, "Couldn't you see all of my torturous advances were just my way of saying…" he suddenly grinned.

"We're no strangers to love."

"What." Link deadpanned.

"You know the rules, and so do I." Dear lord, where was that music coming from? And why did Ghirahim suddenly have a microphone? What the hell _was_ a microphone?

"You-you're not making any sense!" Link shouted in exasperation.

"A full commitment's what I'm thinking of…" Ghirahim sang, eyeing Link seductively as he moved to the beat of the song. He stepped back as a spotlight fell on him.

"Wait, what?" Link asked dumbly, then it sank in, "OH MY GOD NO I'D RATHER EAT GLASS!"

Ghirahim ignored him and thrust his hips as the song picked up more. Kikwis started appearing, joining in. They were so cute it almost made the visual of Ghirahim dancing tolerable for Link.

"You wouldn't get this from any other guy." The demon lord spun as Fi floated by lazily, the sword spirit was drooling, "I just wanna tell you what I'm feeling… gotta make you understand." He winked at Link, who then proceeded to gouge his own eyes out with a spork.

"Never gonna give you up! Never gonna let you down! Never gonna run around and desert you!" Ghirahim danced like never before as the chorus hit. Everything within a five mile radius turned upside down and imploded. The Imprisoned was awakened, ate some people, then went back to sleep. Zelda busted out of her crystal with a Spartan kick, "YO, I HERE A PARTY'S UP IN HURR."

She teleported to the caves and bitchslapped Link. "I didn't know you were cheating on me with… that!" She gestured angrily at Ghirahim who was still singing and dancing unperturbed. She ran away crying and Link merely blinked. Fi started licking her master's face.

"Never gonna make you cry…" the demon lord continued.

"Ahem." Link angrily gestured towards chapter 7, he was ignored.

"Never gonna say goodbye…"

"I wish you would say goodbye!" He shouted, he could feel his mind shattering as the he bared witness to Ghirahim's big gay dance even though he had no eyes.

"Never gonna tell a lie and hurt you…" the demon lord FINALLY finished. Everything went back to normal in an instant – the Kikwis disappeared, the lighting faded to its usual colour and Link's eyes reformed. It was as if it never happened. Ghirahim stepped forwards and put a hand on Link's shoulder.

"Nah, I'm just kidding, Link, I'll be back in a few days when the author decides to stop being a lazy fanfiction serving dog and actually finishes the chapter." He rolled his eyes.

"I heard that you asshole!" A voice boomed from the sky. A comet was then launched down from the heavens and blew Ghirahim up into little bite sized pieces. Link was showered with a spray of rainbow glitter and body parts, by this point he didn't really care.

"Fuck this, I'm out." He said, saluting as he walked away, "Later bitches!"

Fi twirled by, smiling drunkenly, "And happy April Fools day!"

* * *

><p><strong>I'm sorry, I'm so sorry. That was horrible even for intentionally being horrible xD *Goes to impenetrable fortress and hides there* Haha! They'll never find me!<strong>

**Seriously though, real chapter will be up soon!**


	12. Chapter 11 Out of One Hole

Link reached up and swiped the back of his hand across his forehead. He'd think after so much time spent in the blistering heat, he'd be somewhat used to it by now. At least it was considerably cooler in the caves.

The search for the dragon of Lanayru hadn't been going too well so far; it had taken him nearly three hours just to reach the caves he was currently in. As usual the desert had been harsh and unforgiving as the sun beat down relentlessly and the temperatures rivaled those in Eldin... only not as extreme. The enemies weren't much help either; it had taken a huge chunk of time just to avoid being run over by the weird electric-snail creatures. He was tired and thirsty, already growing quickly agitated and seriously hoping the final dragon was nearby…

These caves had to lead to it. The only area in Lanayru he hadn't explored yet was this way and it had to be where the dragon resided. Link was positive of it. The young hero only focused now on putting one foot in front of the other and trying not to take the wrong path.

"So the Lanayru Gorge is supposed to be up ahead?" he asked. The silence was making him uneasy, talking out loud just felt more comfortable at the moment.

"Correct," Fi echoed from the Master Sword on his back, "it shouldn't take long to reach our destination from here."

"And the dragon is supposed to be there."

"If memory serves."

Every step he took resounded off of the stone walls as he proceeded down the tunnel. He was pretty sure that these same caves also provided a way to the Sand Sea. The path seemed to stretch on, taking turns this way and that every so often. Funny… it seemed like it was taking a lot longer than it was supposed to. Then again, he did enter the caves from a different side this time so maybe the tunnels were more complex in this area? Okay, that didn't make a lot of sense but sti–

Suddenly, Link stopped dead in his tracks, eyes widening slightly.

"Master…?" his sword spirit companion's questioning voice drifted to his ears

It was like someone was sliding ice up and down his spine. His skin prickled uncomfortably and he shivered despite the warm air. His hand flew to the handle of the Master Sword and in a flash it was out of its sheath. He whirled to face behind him.

It was about then that the keese decided his face was a landing pad.

"Mmph!" Link shouted in surprise and threw the bat off of him, sending it away with an angry slice. It shrieked before disappearing into a wisp of purple smoke. He looked up to see at least a dozen more clinging to the top corners of the tunnel, baring their small fangs at him. These were the electric kind too. He frowned, how had he not noticed them?

They all swarmed and Link growled in annoyance, keese weren't exactly at the top of the list of difficult enemies, but these ones were especially irritating. He made quick work of them, though not without receiving a few small shocks in return. Link didn't realize his heart had been pounding until he took a few deep breaths to calm himself down, the keese were definitely not what was setting him on edge…

He slowly turned to look back down the tunnel from where he had just come. Empty as it had always been. It was probably just his imagination playing tricks on him but for a second he thought…

"Master Link," Fi spoke again from the sword, "if there is anything troubling you, you are free to tell me."

Link took one last wary glance around before returning the blade to its sheath and continuing down the path. He sighed and pressed a hand to his forehead, "I just don't know, Fi." He wasn't sure what he saw, or felt, or whatever, "This is probably going to sound really stupid but I think something's following us."

She was silent for a few moments, "I can do a scan for enemies in the immediate area if you would like."

He nodded and again she said nothing, it was assumed that she was doing her Fi thing. After about a minute she piped up again, "Analysis complete: no enemies detected outside of the usual stray keese and electric chu chu." Somehow that didn't bring any relief to Link at all. She could be wrong, and he'd rather actually know if something was indeed shadowing him.

Or someone.

Link shook his head. It was not like him to be this paranoid, "Thank you, Fi."

He walked in silence for a while, alert and lost in thought at the same time. It wasn't until the sword spirit spoke again that he snapped out of it. He realized he'd taken a wrong turn and walked in a full circle, ending up on a path he'd already taken.

"Master…" she began, slowly almost, "this is merely my observation but… as of late you have appeared to be very distant and distracted."

"Huh?" Link blinked, "Oh, sorry…"

A blue light flashed and Fi was out of the sword and floating alongside him the next second.

"There is no need to apologize," she said. "According to my information on such subjects, it may be better if you open up on what has been bothering you instead of repressing your emotions. Of course, that is only a suggestion I offer, by no means should you have to."

"I really don't feel like talking about it but..." He sighed. It had been eating at him for days, really, what harm could it do in talking about it? "That was horrible, Fi, I never want to go through something like that ever again." He lowered his gaze, merely staring at the dusty stone ground blankly, "And to think if you hadn't gotten help, what would be happening right now…"

Sensing his anxiety about the whole situation beginning to make itself known, Fi drifted around so she was in front of him. In truth, she wasn't exactly sure how to deal with something like this, lacking human emotions herself, but she could try.

"But things didn't turn out that way so there is no real reason to dwell on it," she said. Reassurance was probably what Link needed the most right now, and the sword spirit knew she was capable of providing it to some extent.

Link stopped.

"But they could've and who's to say they still can't?" se said, raising his head so that his blue eyes met her steely ones of similar color. She took notice of how his voice was beginning to match the fear poking through his mask of indifference. As the sword spirit expected, he wasn't as 'okay' as he had let on previously. Link exhaled sharply, running a hand through his sandy hair as if it would help with the stress.

"If he finds me again… no, we will meet again. I know he'll make sure of that." The hero closed his eyes briefly, hating how his voice had begun to shake. Her emotionless face watched him, waiting for him to continue. He walked by her and they both continued down the tunnel, Fi listening in silence as Link went on.

"It's just… I was so helpless… I couldn't do anything no matter how hard I struggled. The worst part was that he let me think that if I did try hard enough, I would escape. But it was all pointless because he was in control the whole time!" his tone rose without him even realizing it. Lowering his gaze, he finished bitterly, "Some hero I am if I can't even save myself. I seriously thought I was going to die back there."

The teen stopped again, leaning on the wall. He was tired, they'd been searching for hours without even a short break so now seemed as good a time as any for a quick rest. He blew out a breath, sliding down so he was sitting with one hand pressed to his forehead. Closing his eyes for a moment, he took a few slow and deep breaths in through his nose, trying to calm his emotions. Of course he had to choose now to spill his thoughts to Fi. He supposed it didn't matter though, he'd started talking, so he might as well finish.

Opening his eyes again, he began speaking in almost a mutter, barely audible. "Now it feels like… like I'm being let on a leash again, like he can just jerk me back at any time. I don't get why I'm so… so…" Afraid? Panicked? Paranoid? All of the above?

He groaned, this wasn't making him feel better. If anything he felt worse.

He let out a dry, humorless laugh, "Honestly, Fi, he scares the living shit out of me."

"That is understandable," Fi replied simply, floating down so she was looking him directly in the eye, "but what you said is correct. You will have to face him again eventually."

"I know, but… what it I'm caught off guard again?" Funny how he said it while he was sitting in the dirt, in the open, where pretty much anything could attack him. He almost rolled his eyes, this was pathetic. He was supposed to be the Hero Chosen by the Goddess, but had she chosen right?

Fi gave him a sympathetic look – well, as sympathetic as a being with little to no knowledge of human emotion was capable of. She could see how truly frightened and stressed out Link was and she did not want him to be that way.

"You have to trust that you won't be, Master. I have faith in you and you should have faith in yourself."

"Then why am I so jumpy?" He sighed once again, speaking quieter, "It… it feels like he's here. I can't explain it but it just does."

"Master Link, I don't believe I can say anything at this point to serve as comfort to you but I can say this: you are stronger than you think. Remember, Ghirahim has been bested twice by you before and my calculations show that if you did fight him again, under fair circumstances this time," Fi drifted back and stood straight again, blinking her metallic eyes once and appearing to smile slightly, "there is an especially high chance that you could win."

Link only scoffed, "That first match he wasn't even trying, all he saw me as was a nuisance that he didn't even want to deal with. The second time was more or less the same…" Though if he thought back to the showdown in the Fire Sanctuary when he'd gone to collect the Sacred Flame, he recalled that Ghirahim had seemed rather… angry right before he disappeared in that overly dramatic fashion of his. Link remembered… the demon was so worked up because he had actually been beaten. He had taken Link lightly and he had lost.

"You have grown a lot – physically and mentally – since the first time you descended down to the Surface," Fi continued, gesturing to the Master Sword with her chin, "the blade on your back is proof of that. Do you truly believe that if you were to face Ghirahim again, you would lose?"

Link didn't respond. Would he lose? If Ghirahim had been fighting him seriously before and he'd managed to beat him then… shouldn't it be no problem now?

"Let me share what I can conclude from the data I have collected over previous and most recent encounters with him…" Fi said, taking a moment to recall the information.

"He is perfectly aware that, under the right circumstances, you would have no problem defeating him at this point." She finally said, "Master, he is the one that sees you as the threat."

Link wasn't convinced. He persistently shook his head, "No, the real threat is you, Fi. Seriously, you're the only reason I've managed to survive this far. Without you I'd probably be dead about three times over by now... or more."

"Are you positive about that?" Fi patiently replied, then her feet touched the ground and she leaned down in front of him. She spoke softly, her melodic voice echoing before she dematerialized and returned to her vessel, "A sword cannot wield itself."

Link merely sat in silence for a while, letting her words sink in. He had to give himself some credit he supposed, it was just… everything that happened… he felt it was his fault.

His hands clenched at his sides.

But maybe it was time to stop wallowing in self-pity and actually get to doing something instead of sitting in the dirt. If he thought about it, it wasn't his fault he'd gotten captured, it wasn't his fault he'd been tortured, and it wasn't his fault some of his friends and allies had been lost. A flash of pain twisted his features for a brief moment, remembering Pipit. He shouldn't be angry at himself… if there was one person to be angry at, well, who it was should be pretty obvious by now.

The hero pushed himself up, glad that little talk had happened. He did feel a little better. Not that he wasn't going to be cautious, but he didn't feel as apprehensive as before. If Ghirahim wanted to sneak up on him, let him. He'd definitely be ready now.

"What he's done and intends to do is unforgivable," Link said, pleased that he sounded more like himself, focused and determined, "honestly, if provided with the chance, I think I could do it." His hand reached back, fingers briefly touching the handle of the sacred blade. He didn't know why but the touch felt comforting. Turning his attention back to what he'd came to Lanayru for, he once again started down the tunnel of the cave.

"Let's go, Fi. And thanks, I needed that." He faintly smiled.

The sword hilt flashed blue for a moment, "Anytime, Master."

The two progressed deeper into Lanayru.

* * *

><p>'How did I end up here…?' Link thought as he surveyed the area before him. It appeared to be another part of the mines… No – more like an area for storing mine carts. Well, at least it looked like it used to store mine carts. Like the rest of Lanayru, it was way past its use, ancient and decrepit. He didn't think much of it. Nothing of interest was really here so he might as well just keep proceeding towards the Gorge.<p>

The room was expansive, busted up mine carts were scattered along the walls and the higher up scaffoldings were crumbling. He began making his way to the opposite end of the room where a door lay; it was the only other way in and out so it had to lead somewhere. He looked down and saw that various clumps of bones were scattered along the ground, they were easily recognizable. He was glad there were no active timeshift stones around or he'd be having to deal with some unwanted company from the past...

And then he cursed as, no sooner had he thought that, a light sound like stone clicking against stone rang out into the otherwise silence of the room. He turned back around to see that he was wrong about there being no timeshift stones in the room. Above the entrance which he had just come from, there was a ledge where the glowing blue stone sat. Beside the stone stood a bokoblin, its cleaver like knife still extended, and it was grinning at Link stupidly.

The circle of blue light expanded and engulfed the room, switching it to its past state. Several consecutive high pitched whirs signaled stun rods coming to life all around him and he found himself surrounded by that 'unwanted company' he'd mentioned before. There had to be more than a few dozen at least, all armed.

"Great…" he muttered, glancing around at the Techno-bokoblins and drawing his sword. Another quick glance told him both exits had been blocked off by electricity. So this was a trap, just what he needed at the moment…

Another sound different from the rest jerked his attention to the side. His eyes widened as he saw a beam of crackling energy shoot along the ground and towards him. Several beamos had appeared around the area, their mechanical eyes searching for their target – which was Link. Also just what he needed.

He dodged away from the beam and faced the enemies gradually advancing on him. It looked like he would have to defeat all of them to be able to get out of the room. It wouldn't be impossible, though certainly not easy.

'Well,' he thought grimly, holding his sword at the ready, 'this should be fun.'

* * *

><p>'Fun' wouldn't exactly have been the way to describe it.<p>

Link pulled himself up to higher ground via ladder, limbs shaky from a recent shock. It was incredibly difficult to maneuver between the bokoblins and the beamos. He was forced to ignore the red demons for now and focus on the annoying immobile robots that continuously shot lethal lines of electricity at him. There were four of them: two had been taken out already, one had once again spotted him and was readying another beam of energy.

Link pulled back an arrow and let it fly before the beamos had a chance to fire. It's lone, mechanical eye shattered and the machine shut down almost instantly. Three down, one to go. Unfortunately, the last one was close to the ladder he had just scaled which meant he couldn't get an angle on it from where he was. Plus, there was a sea of bokoblins waiting down there, all pushing and shoving at one another trying to climb up the ladder. It was a pretty comical sight actually, Link smirked. One actually managed to pull itself up, but it was quickly sent back down with a boot to the ugly face. It shrieked as it fell back into the mob.

He checked his arrows before looking over to where the timeshift stone was. The present-time bokoblin that had triggered it was also there. Soon after the stone had been activated, shutters had covered it so he couldn't shoot an arrow at it and return everything back to the present. The bokoblin then took an object out which Link recognized instantly.

'Oh no you don't,' he thought and readied an arrow faster than the bokoblin could bring its fat lips to the signal horn. Link didn't know where it would call more of its friends from considering both entrances to the room were blocked but they were bokoblins, they had ways of getting in. The arrow found a new home in the creature's throat, cutting off its cry. With that taken care of, he looked back down to the persistent crowd below.

Another red demon had climbed up to his level. This time, he thrust a bomb in its hands and then kicked it back down. The explosion sent them all flying apart, shrieking.

That took out most of them at least. The remainder of them could be easily picked off from where he was.

He loaded another arrow, pulling it back and aiming it at a recovering bokoblin. Then his grip relaxed as a sudden sickly coldness spread throughout his veins. His eyes widened and he lowered the bow slowly, sensing the danger before he saw it. It was the same presence as earlier – no, it had always been there, just lurking in the shadows – but now it was magnified.

Closer.

And then something brushed against the nape of his neck.

At the moment, Link was caught somewhere between unbidden rage and paralyzing fear. Fight or flight. There was nowhere to run to so the former was the only option. Not that he had been intending to run in the first place.

It all happened in a swift blur of motion. He turned on instinct, already having swapped the bow for his sword, and lashed out. The blade bit into something and then a solid impact to his gut followed. The rushing of air from his lungs as his back made contact with the unforgiving stone floor below came after that. It all happened too fast for Link to process and the hero was left swimming in utter disorientation.

An attack from behind, somehow he should have anticipated that. It was a cowardly tactic, and one only fitting for the demon lord to use.

He coughed, feeling like he was about to throw up – the fall from the moderately high ledge had not been kind. Vaguely, he was aware of the approaching bokoblins and the charging sound of a beamos getting ready to fire – though he couldn't exactly do anything about it at the moment.

It was like the oxygen wasn't registering in his lungs even though he could feel air coming in and out. Damn… he'd been winded really badly. Every instinct was screaming at him to move and run, but he couldn't. He managed to push himself onto his side, getting a clear view of the remaining beamos' eye, crackling with bright energy and fixed on him. The bokoblins were mere feet away by now so it appeared that, like it or not, he was going to have to get out of the way.

Gathering his strength back together, he rolled to his feet and dodged away from the powerful current as it danced along the ground towards him. Luckily for him, it hit some of the Techo-bokoblins instead, knocking down their already meager numbers. Unluckily, there was no cover out in the middle of the room, but that didn't matter much. Another quickly shot arrow into the beamos eye was all it took to shut down the machine and stop it from trying to fry him on the spot. Of course he was nowhere near safe yet.

The pounding on the inside of his ribcage was almost painful as he frantically scanned the room with his eyes, searching for the enemy that wasn't among the oncoming bokoblins. Adrenaline seared throughout his system like hot fire, enhancing his senses as he listened carefully, ears trained for a tell-tale sound of reappearing diamonds.

Ghirahim was here and it was about time to end this.

Out of the few remaining bokoblins, one of them drew to close. Out of sheer irritation, Link shield-bashed it before it had the chance to stun and slashed it across the throat. The creatures were nothing more than pests now; he had to focus on the main problem… wherever he was.

He took care of the rest in the same manner, hardly aware of what he was doing, only taking his infuriation out on them with each swing of the sword. How he managed to avoid every stun rod was impressive on its own. Soon, the last one fell but he hardly paid it any attention.

Fear and anticipation danced so closely together in every fiber of his being that he couldn't decide which quantity was greater. Of course he was afraid – he knew perfectly well what Ghirahim was capable of – yet at the same time he almost couldn't wait for the demon lord to show himself. That was… if he would.

Being the target for such torment received from his enemy, it was understandably frustrating when instead of a physical appearance, a familiar sinister chortle echoed around the area. Link suppressed a snarl in his throat, disbelieving that the coward actually possessed the audacity not to face him out in the open after everything he had dished out.

Actually, never mind, he wasn't all that surprised.

"Ghirahim!" he called out, whirling as he heard an unmistakable clicking noise. A faint swishing followed, it sounded like knives cutting through the air – which was exactly what it turned out to be. He turned just in time to deflect a volley of glowing daggers from the opposite direction, anger spiking through his system at the condescending attack.

"Stop messing around!" he challenged. Still nothing. Then it clicked.

Ghirahim was intentionally trying to rile him up, get him unfocused, and then he would strike while Link was blinded by anger. He grudgingly forced down his fury and tried a different tactic.

"You know, I find it kind of sad that you've devoted all of your attention to me instead of Zelda." He called to the empty space around him.

"Don't get me wrong, sky child. I haven't forgotten about her, I'd just prefer to deal with you first."

Link turned towards the source of the voice. There he was, just casually standing against the far wall with his arms crossed, as if he'd always been there.

Link allowed a tight, contemptuous smirk to fall across his lips, "No luck searching for the Gate yourself then?" He couldn't afford to show fear now, so he didn't. He had to act like none of it had fazed him, that the demon lord himself didn't faze him.

"Don't get smart with me." Ghirahim said, pushing himself off the wall and bringing his malicious gaze to fix on Link, "We have a lot to catch up on, do we not?"

But Link was the one to start the battle this time. He easily crossed the distance between them. The desire for vengeance or some form of retribution was almost overwhelming. To put it simply, he wanted Ghirahim to hurt.

Like, really hurt.

He supposed he should have been surprised at himself for having such dark thoughts, but he was beyond the point of caring.

A black blade met his own, though it was quickly blocked and countered. Ghirahim dodged around him and Link persisted, engaging in the deadly dance the other offered. As they battled, every once and a while he would catch surprise flicker across the demon lord's face, it was probably due to his overly aggressive strikes. Link had never fought this hard before but it still wasn't enough. He broke away, breathing heavily and reminding himself to stay focused. Blindly attacking would get him nowhere.

Ghirahim landed in a half-crouch not too far away.

"My, someone sure is a little eager," the demon lord said with a sneer as he stood up.

"How long have you been following me?" Link shot back, pleased that his voice remained steady and didn't show how anxious he really was.

Ghirahim inclined his head to the side slightly, narrowing his eyes, "Long enough."

Link didn't know how to respond to that because he was so greatly disturbed. Instead, he let his blade do the talking, infuriated when all he was met with was diamond shards and empty air. He voiced his frustration with a growl, and then let out a surprised shout when something batted him to the side and sent him to the floor. He rolled to his feet and was back up faster than he'd been knocked down.

"Haven't I proved to you already that you're no match for me with or without your sorry excuse for a sword?" Link looked over as Ghirahim approached him without hurry. He cast a swift glance to the right, at the timeshift stone still covered by the shutters. It looked like he couldn't leave here even if he wanted to; the electricity was still barring both exits and it wouldn't shut off unless he reverted the area back to the present.

"Oh yeah? Then why did you lose before?" the hero said, looking back and glaring daggers at the demon.

"You really are dense." Ghirahim paused and rolled his eyes, "I was toying with you, hero. If, for a second, I had been serious, you would've been dead in an instant."

Link bristled at that, unable to tell if it was true or not.

"Then fight me seriously now!" he challenged, then added on, "Or better yet, I'll fight you."

He rushed Ghirahim once more, but the demon sidestepped him and leapt back, landing a short distance away with an infuriatingly smug look on his face. Link was tempted to cross the room and attack once again but he refrained as Ghirahim would only evade him again. He gnashed his teeth together behind his closed lips, trying not to show how mad his enemy's lack of interest in battle made him.

"What makes you think I want to fight?" the demon lord said, brushing his hair back before giving Link a rather rapacious leer, "I doubt it would hardly be as rewarding as what I have in mind."

Link couldn't suppress a shudder at hearing those words which he definitely knew had nothing to do with fighting.

"Or maybe you're just too afraid of a fair fight to drop the cowardly tactics," he retorted, his grip on the Master Sword's hilt tightening.

Ghirahim's eyes narrowed, amusement mixed with subtle anger crossing his features.

"Not likely, sky child," he said in a level tone but Link knew he'd struck something, "I am perfectly capable of killing you anytime I want to."

In a flash, the demon lunged unexpectedly, bridging the short distance between him and Link. The hero was ready for it, even as the onyx steel came down with unrelenting force. Funny, Ghirahim said he wasn't interested in fighting.

The black rapier was deflected with a sharp shield-bash, which was then followed by a series of horizontal, vertical and diagonal cuts. Link was aware of Ghirahim crying out in rage, but for the moment, he was lost in making the demon lord taste the bite of the complete Master Sword. Ghirahim had been caught off guard and he wasn't about to waste this opportunity. It was like his body had been possessed by some other entity, and that entity spoke only the language of 'kill' and 'revenge.'

Ghirahim suddenly ducked a swipe, and then grabbed his wrist in a crushing grip, making him unable to use his sword. Link's body reacted before his mind did. In one quick moment, Link had leapt upward and driven his knee into the underside of Ghirahim's jaw. He swore he heard a crack as the demon's head snapped back – oh, there were no words to describe how utterly good that felt.

Ghirahim's grip faltered and broke as he staggered back, snarling in fury. His upper body was riddled with several gashes of varying deepness. One gloved hand wiped away the black blood dripping from the corner of his white lips – Link guessed he had bit his tongue. The young hero stood his ground even though the demon was giving him one of the most resentful looks he'd ever seen.

"You were saying?" He couldn't help but smirk. For once, the upper hand was his.

And he wasn't about to let Ghirahim recover so soon. He darted forwards again, engaging once more in lethal combat. With every swing of the sword, he drew the demon back a few more steps and oddly enough, Ghirahim wasn't teleporting away this time. He had called another sword to existence to defend against Link's strikes, getting a few of his own in though the hero mainly remained on the offensive. The Skyloftian was aware of several sharp stings along his arms and arms and torso, signaling he'd been cut himself, but he ignored them as he drove the demon further and further back across the floor.

And then, in one moment, the demon's frustrated expression shifted to a sly one. Moments later, diamond shards took his place and Link nearly lost it. He whirled around to stab at the demon he thought to be behind him, but there was nothing. The hero realized his slip up too late. A sharp cinch from behind told him two hands had latched onto the material of his tunic and his eyes widened. He let out a yelp as he was promptly swung around and thrown backwards into the wall of crackling energy.

The current was like searing, white-hot fire bursting through a veil of frigid coldness. The shock was so abrupt as it spread to the edges of his limbs, the pain hitting him with equal force. A cry left his lips as he mind went white for a few moments, muscles seized up.

It appeared that he hadn't noticed (or just taken light of the fact) that as the two had battled, they had come dangerously close to the door opposite the timeshift stone covered with a barrier of electricity. Or rather, Ghirahim had purposefully lured him to that side. He cursed at himself inwardly as he sunk to the ground, the current releasing him after several agonizing seconds.

That was incredibly careless, the balance of power in the room had shifted and he no longer had control. He squeezed his eyes shut, trying to will away the after effects of the electricity so he could stand. Careless… careless… careless…

Or maybe he never had any sort of control over the situation in the first place. He gritted his teeth, pushing against the ground, limbs giving sharp little spasms as he tried to get up. His sword had fallen to the ground a few feet away, his fingers stretched for it. A sharp kick was dealt to his side before he could reach it, and then a foot came down on his wrist.

"Well," a voice said from above, "I'd say that's enough of that."

Link coughed, his breath had been knocked clean out of him by Ghirahim's kick and the electric barrier. His vision was swimming and his body jolted at random. Ghirahim ground down hard on his hand, forcing a wince from him, and then removed his foot and he kicked the sword away. His eyes widened as he registered how the situation had just gone from bad to worse.

Link managed to raise his head and glare up at the demon lord, who offered a cruel smile in return.

Forcing himself onto his forearms was much more difficult than it should have been. His body felt like water, but he was determined to get up. He wouldn't lose, he couldn't lose now.

"Oh, no, no, no," Ghirahim chided, easily booting him onto his back and keeping him down with one foot, "don't force yourself." At the word 'force,' he applied painful pressure on Link's midsection, bearing down on him with his weight.

Link grunted and attempted to push him off with his hands but Ghirahim didn't budge one bit.

"You see?" His enemy said, smirking in satisfaction as Link writhed beneath him, "You pose no challenge to me and you never will." He dipped his head slightly, leaning over and looking the trapped hero directly in the eye, "Oh, and thank you for making me bleed."

He held out his hand over Link's face, blood had begun to run down his glove from a slash in his forearm and dripped off the tips of his fingers. A few of the black droplets splashed down on the Skyloftian's cheeks and forehead but he didn't even blink.

"Then do it," Link huffed, glaring up at the demon. Ghirahim looked contemplative, his sword held at an angle to the ground. Link's head could be off in one quick swipe of the blade.

"I could," Ghirahim said flippantly. "You have no idea how badly I want to."

"Then what's stopping you?" Link ground out. He didn't know why he was daring Ghirahim to kill him but at this point, he'd prefer it to whatever else the demon had in mind. "I'm not telling you where Zelda is so you're wasting your time," he pointed out.

"Perhaps," the demon lord raised a brow, "but we'll just have to find out, won't we?"

In one moment, Ghirahim had removed himself, pulled back and delivered a swift kick directly to Link's head. The hero sank into the depths of darkness almost instantly despite his struggles to swim back up.

* * *

><p>Consciousness came relatively easy this time despite his pounding headache. A groan escaped his lips; he had to stop waking up like this.<p>

All was dark and the air was heavy with silence and dust. He opened his eyes hesitantly, a sinking feeling beginning to build in his stomach as he recalled what had happened prior to ending up in… wherever he currently was. He could scarcely see anything beyond a few feet in front of him because of how dim everything was.

At the moment, he appeared to be lying flat on his back on something elevated from the ground. His arms were at his sides, when he tried to lift them up he discovered that he couldn't move them. Shocker.

It could've been the fact that he was still only half awake but he didn't feel scared at all. In fact, he fought the urge to laugh. Nothing was funny, it was just better than being afraid of what was going to happen to him now.

Managing to raise his head up just enough, he found that he couldn't move his hands or feet because it appeared that they were being held to the surface he was lying on. Glowing purple bonds surrounded his wrists and ankles, rendering them immobile. He also took the time to realize that he'd been relieved of everything but his trousers and boots.

Predictably, struggling seemed like the only thing he could do at this point. And of course, that proved to be useless rather soon. He let himself slump back down to the stone with a sigh, then frowned.

Wait.

His eyes widened as came to realize something.

He couldn't breathe through his mouth.

The compulsion to laugh didn't arise any more.

Panic hit him like a ton of bricks as he rose to full awareness as he soon abandoned pretending not to be frightened. Immediately, he thrashed his head side to side, trying to shake off whatever was covering his mouth. When that didn't work, he resorted to the last thing he could think of doing; he screamed, the sound coming out muffled. Maybe the old and decrepit robots would hear him. Hah. He knew he was still in Lanayru judging by the surrounding area and feel of the air, but he didn't know his exact location. Maybe Ghirahim had taken him somewhere deeper in the mines where no one would find him…

He merely lay there for a few minutes, panting through his nose with his eyes shut. This was hopeless. He was screwed, and all because he'd been so stupid. Ghirahim had lured him across the area where they were battling, that's why he didn't teleport away. That much made sense, but a lot of other things did not…

If Ghirahim had wanted to recapture him, why not just do it at Skyloft? Why now?

But he didn't particularly care for that at the moment because, after a short while, he felt another presence in close proximity. Fingers crept out from the darkness to intertwine in his hair, running through it gently. An involuntary whimper left his throat.

"Ah, he's awake."

That voice. Link hated that voice.

He opened his eyes and sure enough, there was the demon's face visible in the dim light, smirking down at him as he took in the hero's perplexed expression. He slowly made his way around the slab of rock where Link was held captive.

"Sorry, but I think I'd prefer if you were silent this time." The demon lord spoke, then took a moment to clarify, "Well… talking-wise, of course. Should the urge arise, feel free to scream all you like. This is a completely secluded area, no one will hear it and no one will interrupt the fun we're about to have." His eyes narrowed as he leaned over Link slightly, "I mean it this time."

Link merely stared up at him in confusion. He wasn't trying to get him to talk this time? What? But he thought he was after Zelda… The hero's brow furrowed.

The demon sighed in delight, almost, placing his hands on either side of Link's head and leering down at him. A head-butt would probably be possible at this distance… but what good would that do?

"I can only imagine how vexing this must be for you. Out of one hole and into another. Hah." A sadistic grin took form on Ghirahim's white lips.

Confusion and fear switched to anger on Link's face. He narrowed his eyes up at his captor, who chuckled in response before moving to pace around him. One gloved hand lightly glided over the surface of the slab of stone he had Link on.

"I'm sure you're familiar with the Triforce, are you not?" he spoke in an inquiring tone, glancing to the mark on Link's right hand.

Link blinked in surprise at the seemingly random question. He furrowed his brow as Ghirahim went on.

"I've been doing some research as of late and it turns out that the three dragons are in relation to it. Funny, I never knew that." He paused, then shrugged, "Well, no matter. But it only makes sense that you're seeking out these three dragons because they hold the keys to finding the Triforce, correct?"

Link cursed himself for looking so shocked that Ghirahim had figured that out because the demon smiled knowingly.

"I thought so."

Link tested the bonds again but to no avail. Maybe he could get Ghirahim to break his concentration somehow… but how?

He let out a soft groan, letting his head fall back down and looking up at the ceiling. He really wished he could talk back, listening to Ghirahim ramble on was like torture in itself.

Hm… so I may have more use for you than I thought," Ghirahim continued, disappearing from sight behind Link's head. The teen had to crane his neck back to follow him with his eyes as he'd have preferred not to let Ghirahim out of his sight. Two hands came down on either side of his head again, which made him jump, and then Ghirahim was bearing down on him with his intense gaze.

"But for now… I believe punishment is in order." Link nearly choked at the glee in his voice, though he really should have expected nothing less.

Ghirahim then held up one of his arms so Link could clearly see two deep gashes that had been inflicted by him. The hero smirked in satisfaction behind the gag. It didn't look like the wounds had completely stopped bleeding either and if Link squinted through the dimness, he could see that most of the other injuries the demon adorned were in the same condition. He guessed it was the Master Sword's power that had done it and he inwardly thanked the Sacred Flames. He was proven correct by Ghirahim's next words.

"Your blade stings, sky child. I can't even heal properly." He suddenly grasped Link's hair painfully so he couldn't bash foreheads and leaned down, speaking in a malicious tone, "I don't think I can let something like that be forgiven so easily."

Link narrowed his eyes, suddenly furious, 'And I don't think I can forgive you so easily but you don't hear me complaining. Oh right, because I CAN'T.' He resumed struggling, but Ghirahim retaliated by using his grip on his hair to slam his head down to the stone. He lay still again, squeezing his eyes shut as tears threatened to form, a pained whimper building up in his throat.

Ghirahim released his hair and stepped back, beginning to pace again.

"Drop the act already. I can see you trying to mask your obvious fear with anger."

Link opened his eyes into a glare, 'Who says it's an act?'

Ghirahim smirked as if reading his mind.

"To put it in your vulgar terms, I 'scare the living shit out of you' so what reason is there to hide it?"

If Link's jaw could have dropped, it would've. He knew he wasn't just seeing thing…

Ghirahim read his expression effortlessly, "Yes, I did see that. Quite the performance I must say. And I thought I was the only one who could be dramatic. You're quite fun to observe, you know," he grinned devilishly, "especially when you're constantly looking over your shoulder, even on that island of yours."

Link suddenly felt extremely sick.

"Unsettling, isn't it?" Yes. Didn't the demon have better things to do than stalk him? Like say, searching for the Time Gate? That's what he was after, wasn't it?

He gave Ghirahim a questioning, albeit frightened, look.

"I assure you I wasn't watching all the time, just tuning in and out… and deciding if I should take you prisoner again or continue watching you squirm for a while longer…"

That didn't help at all, not that it was supposed to.

Ghirahim got closer again, much to Link's blatant discomfort. The hero turned his head away as he leaned down and rested his elbows on the slab of rock.

"I'm not sure what it is about you specifically, but I must say that I find your anguish mildly… addictive."

To say Link was appalled would have been an understatement. He clenched his eyes shut and gritted his teeth together as he felt a gentle caress stroking the side of his face. It felt disgusting. He hated when Ghirahim did stuff like this, and he probably only did it because he knew he hated it.

And then he was gone. Link exhaled in relief, even if it was only temporary.

But he had returned just as quick, the captive hero nearly groaned in dismay. He looked over to where Ghirahim had reappeared and his eyes widened. Oh no…

Link's face drained of colour.

"I have to say," Ghirahim smirked cruelly, studying the coil in his hands before looking back at Link's trepidation-filled face, "this is by far my favorite weapon of yours. Reminds you of the good times we shared in Eldin, does it not?"

Oh it reminded him all right. It was one of the more difficult things he had trouble forgetting.

The demon lord stood up from the seat he had conjured up a short distance away and unraveled the blue and red whip. Link made a choked noise and squirmed against his bonds again, already feeling nauseous, remembering how much pain could be inflicted by the simple weapon.

Ghirahim sensed this. Gloved fingers ran through the teen's blond hair, pushing it back over his sweaty forehead. "I would try and hold my gorge down if I were you, sky child," He said softly, almost caringly, which made it even more demented, "if you vomit, I guarantee you will choke and die."

'Kind of hard not to when I'm around you!' Link wanted to spit back. Instead, he merely glared.

"Hm…" Ghirahim mused lowly, pacing a bit back and forth, "How many lashes do you think will be sufficient this time, sky child?"

'How about none?' he wished he could say. Not that Ghirahim would listen.

"I'd say…" the demon lord raised his arm and Link braced himself, "until I get bored."

* * *

><p>Link let out a muffled scream, arching his back as the whip came down again. His torso and upper arms were already covered in fierce lacerations cutting into deep scars, which amplified the pain to unbearable levels. Tears were rolling down his cheeks and he made no attempt to stop them. Exhausted, he tiredly slumped back down to the table, chest heaving. Because of the gag he could only get air through his nose, it was a wonder he hadn't passed out yet.<p>

Why? Why was Ghirahim doing this? What was the point in interrogating him if he couldn't speak and tell him where Zelda's location was?

Fingers wiped away the moisture running down his face and he let out a distraught moan. He opened his eyes to see Ghirahim standing nearby with his typical fake sympathetic look on.

"Poor boy… Shall I stop?" With a twisted smile, Ghirahim ran the entire length of the whip through his hand, loving how it made Link grimace and flinch away. It delighted him knowing the psychologically effect it had taken on his adversary. Link was never going to look at his little toy the same way again.

When the boy attempted to turn his head away, he reached out and seized his jaw.

"I expect a response, even if it is a simple nod of the head," Ghirahim said firmly, narrowing his eyes, "do you want me to stop?"

Link only responded with a hard look.

Ghirahim wordlessly stepped back and whipped him again, cracking him across the stomach. The hero threw his head to the side, body contorting against the strike. But no sound came out. He frowned with disappointment.

When Link turned his head back to shoot a piercing glare, he saw why. Blood was dripping through the gag he had summoned, a small stream running down his chin and neck.

The demon lord rolled his eyes, "It's pathetic what lengths you humans will go to if it means not showing pain to your tormenters. Futile, and quite foolhardy."

Reaching out, he roughly jerked Link up by his hair, bringing his mouth close to the hero's, hearing the other's breathing catch in his throat.

"You should realize by now that only urges me on more," he said softly, almost a whisper.

Link tried to pull away but Ghirahim tightened his hold, keeping him still and making him seethe in discomfort. What the demon did next was probably one of the most repulsive things Link ever had the displeasure to experience. His eyes widened as he felt Ghirahim lick up his neck and jaw, lapping up the trail of blood that had ran from his mouth. He shut his eyes tight and whimpered, 'Don't throw up… don't throw up…' he repeated in his head.

A shudder wracked his body as he writhed in both pain and distress, waiting for him to stop. He did soon enough, pulling back with a rapacious gleam in his eye.

"I'm beginning to rethink that promise of killing you once I'd discovered the spirit maiden's location…" he started, looping the whip into one hand. Link seriously hoped he wasn't going to use it again. "You'd make such a good pet. The Goddess' Chosen Hero as a slave at my feet. Somehow I find that seems more appealing than what I had originally had planned…"

If Link wasn't already traumatized by the demon lord's actions, then his words definitely did the trick. He was completely stunned.

"But I'm getting ahead of myself. I see your spirit is still as tough is ever." Ghirahim chuckled darkly and raised his hand, "We'll just have to do something about that now, won't we?"

He snapped his fingers and Link cringed at the sound as it echoed around the room.

After a few moments he didn't think anything had happened, no black swords had appeared or anything out of the usual. Then he felt it, something was crawling up his leg… no, more like slithering. He glanced down and was horrified to see a blob of jelly-like substance working its way up to his torso. A chu chu, but it wasn't necessarily the monster itself that had him worried – chu chus weren't exactly the most deadly of creatures. Well, most of them weren't anyway. It was the color he was apprehensive of.

This one was yellow.

Ghirahim was now sitting on the chair across from him, with a highly smug expression on his pale face, "I wouldn't move around too much. They get rather… excited…"

As if Link didn't know that already. The chu chu had slid over his fresh wounds, accidentally making him jerk at the sudden jolts of pain running up and down his spine. This action roused the sentient blob of jelly and its skin began to crackle with electricity.

Ghirahim smiled.

"Let the fun begin…"


	13. Author's Note

**Okay, first things first. Really sorry for the note chapter which you technically aren't even allowed to do on FF anyways but eh.**

**Secondly, I'm gonna have to put this thing on hiatus for a while because of school stuff. My grades are drowning and I really need to catch up Dx Plus I'm having horrible writers block at the moment so I think I'm going to take a break from this thing for a while. Hopefully the block will randomly explode or just go away or something.**

**Thirdly, I haven't yet decided on an ending. I've started a pole on my page with several possible paths, so go vote. Now. **_**I will not be posting any more chapters **_**until I have a decision made. Whichever option gets the most votes will be the one I go with because I honestly can't choose myself B: Pfff I'm so lazy.**

**Also, can anyone tell me if the pole is actually showing up? Idunno if it is or not.**

**Fourthly, I love you all! You lovely little duckies you. Yes, you. :3 Seriously, you all have been so awesome and I want to throw donuts at you but I fear I will hit my computer screen so... uhh... *awkward internet hug***

**Again, sorry for the note Dx**


	14. Chapter 12 And Out Again?

Another violent spasm wracked his body. He threw his head back, muscles seizing up, clenching and unclenching at random as the shock raced through his system. The pain from his earlier wounds only made it that much more unpleasant. He was honestly surprised he hadn't passed out yet. The scream died in his raw throat, there was no point in wasting energy and breath – the latter he so greatly needed considering he could only draw in air through his nose.

The mass of yellow jelly ceased its assault for the time being, allowing an all too short moment of rest. The arc of his spinal column slumped back down to the surface he lay on.

Thirty… no, forty… wait, it couldn't be that many. He groaned. He'd lost count of how many times he'd been shocked.

If this was kept up, he would surely die. There was no way his nervous system could handle any more. The distinct pounding against his rib cage grew more erratic, then slowed, then grew erratic again in an unpredictable pattern. Head lolling to the side, he accidentally locked gazes with his tormenter. The glare he offered didn't come off the least bit defiant. Instead, it appeared as though he were pleading with his eyes for it all to stop.

Predictably, Ghirahim wasn't moved in the slightest.

Link grimaced at the immense pain seizing his entire body, it felt like he was being burned from the inside out. He actually considered slamming his own head to the stone he laid on; maybe unconsciousness would provide some temporary relief. He was just about to act on it when another shock spread throughout his system unexpectedly and scrambled his already incoherent thoughts. He gasped in air through his nose, practically hyperventilating. It was panic-inducing enough not being able to breathe properly and the random intervals of agony the chu chu dished out didn't help at all.

The room swayed in and out of black, though before he could pass out another brutal shock sent his head spinning and jerked him back to awareness, unfortunately. He let out a quiet moan. How much longer would this last? Was Ghirahim really trying to kill him this time?

Another shock.

Another shock.

Somewhere along the line he stopped reacting to the electricity repeatedly branching out all over his form and merely lay in a state of confusion, unable to process if he was awake or not – though he couldn't bring himself to care either way. Unconsciousness called to him, its clutches almost welcoming. Involuntarily, his eyes closed as he surrendered to it, though something tugged at his mind, persisting even in his current state.

It was then he realized that something was quite literally calling to him. Not a voice, but a sound escalating in volume until the urge to cover his ears arose. Physically, his arms were pinned at his sides so that was impossible. He cringed inwardly – where was that noise coming from anyway?

Maybe he could've been dreaming – or, was most likely dreaming – but he felt himself turn his entire body to the left and gawked at what he saw.

The great scaly beast rose up from the depths of darkness, its grotesque abundance of teeth exposed as it opened its maw to let out another ear-splitting howl. He grimaced, reaching up to press his hands (as they were somehow free) to the sides of his head, yet at the same time he could feel his hands at his sides straining against their bonds. The sound came in anyways, assaulting his eardrums relentlessly and pounding on the inside of his skull. He squeezed his eyes shut and tried to focus, though he didn't quite know what to focus on. What was happening?

When he opened them again, he nearly jumped back in shock. Rows and rows of teeth swam straight at him, expanding over his field of vision and consuming him whole. A flash of agony jerked him back to reality. With the sensation of being slammed down on his backside, his eyes flew open, the image of the Imprisoned dissolving back into the stone ceiling of the room his waking body was in. Lacking the strength to neither thrash nor scream, he allowed his eyelids to drift shut again, only dimly registering footsteps signalling a certain someone's approach. Though at the moment, he couldn't bring himself to care.

But through his hazy mind, he knew that something was off. His jumbled thoughts kept getting redirected back to his vision, though he was unable to wrap his head around it and grasp its significance. All he knew was that it was urgent for some inexplicable reason.

Consciousness was fleeting, only coming in short, agonizing bursts. It seemed to remain that way for eternity until finally, he was aware of a voice sifting through the various shades of black, trying to reach him…

The next time he opened his eyes he found himself staring into steely blue ones.

…

"Master Link," Fi spoke as she saw him awaken, a slight edge of concern in her tone. Confusion was first to appear on his features as he took in his current position, limbs no longer bound and mouth uncovered. Pain came next, the full impact of his wounds registering as he let out a low whimper, hands shakily pushing against the stone as he rolled over, curling in on himself. The stone slab that had apparently been conjured up before had vanished so he just lay on the floor now.

She patiently waited for him to collect himself, watching as he forced his arms to support his weight and sat up with a grimace. With shaking fingers he tenderly touched a spot his badly torn up chest, fingertips coming back red. He dropped his head and emptied his stomach onto the ground, coughing and spitting. Trembling slightly, he wiped his mouth with the back of his hand, eyes betraying his attempts at obtaining an unfazed composition. Fear was evident in them as they jittered back and forth, seemingly searching for something – but no one else was in the dry, decrepit room.

An odd reaction stirred within her seeing her Master, her friend, like this.

"Master, I recommend utilizing the potion in your adventure pouch to alleviate your injuries," she advised, seeing as how he could barely make the slightest movement without cringing. Link looked at her with blatant confusion. In turn, she looked over to the aforementioned item lying just a short distance away along with the Master Sword scabbard and the hero's tunic. Link's eyes widened, then narrowed, skeptical and obviously puzzled that his stuff was just… there. Slowly, hesitantly, he forced himself to crawl to his equipment, dig into his item pouch and withdraw a bottle full of bright red liquid. The sword spirit floating nearby disappeared back into the hilt of the Master Sword once she saw him unscrew the lid and down the potion.

Link made a face at the bitter flavour, but a look of relief soon replaced it. He sighed as the potion began taking effect, the wounds on his chest sealing up. His heart pounded and head buzzed with a sudden torrent of thoughts, fully taking in his situation and recalling what had happened previous to blacking out. And also, what was going to happen now.

He winced as he accidentally ran his tongue against a badly split (though starting to heal) portion of the inside of his cheek, where he'd bitten down before to keep from crying out. His mouth tasted like blood, vomit, and red potion all at the same time – it was a delightful combination. He spat furiously, trying to rid himself of the taste before raising his head to glance around.

The chamber wasn't as big as he'd initially thought as he could see all four corners of it once he let his eyes adjust to the semi-darkness, plus a door. Escape.

This was starting to ring some familiar bells…

He was still reeling from the most recent encounter with the demon lord, he moved mechanically, in somewhat of a daze when he went to gather his stuff together. At the same time panic was stirring within him, but he wasn't sure why. Finally, he managed to voice at least one scrambled thought.

"Where…" he started, his voice hoarse, "Where is he now?" His hand closed around the handle of the Master Sword and he returned the blade to its sheath.

Fi's voice drifted back, "I'm not sure, though I do not detect his presence anywhere close by."

That made Link stop for a moment, a slow, questioning look beginning to take form on his face.

"Like you didn't before when we were apparently being followed before?" A sharp edge crept into his words. No response was heard from his companion.

"You didn't sense him even when he was so close that he could hear every word we were saying?"

It was a long while before she replied, her voice emanating from the Master Sword with an almost apologetic tone to it.

"I truly did not, though… his signature is very difficult to pick up properly. It's very… complex." It was the truth, Ghirahim was so adapted with disguising his presence that it was nearly impossible to get a good reading of even though she was familiar with it.

"And you didn't tell me this before?" Link's voice walked the line between anger and fear, rising in volume.

"Master, I–"

"I sensed him before you did!"

A short period of silenced followed the sudden outburst. After a while the sword spirit decided to break it.

"My apologies... I should have been more observant."

Link had stopped gathering his belongings, merely sitting there on his knees and staring blankly ahead. At the moment, with all of the blood and scars visible on his body, he looked like the epitome of what Ghirahim had envisioned when he promised to break the hero.

"No… I'm sorry. I'm just…" he murmured quietly. Even in the eerie dim light of the room it was quite visible that he was quivering slightly, his head dropped, hopeless and frightened. Like a human would be.

"You shouldn't discourage yourself so quickly, you're handling stress a lot better than others would in this situation." Fi spoke to him, though her reassuring words did not seem to have much effect. He didn't say anything for a long while, didn't move, and didn't do anything. His face was still lowered, blond strands hiding his eyes and features.

"Handling it a lot better, huh?" He finally near-whispered, "How did you end up here anyway?"

"Ghirahim merely left the Master Sword and your weapons here then disappeared without a word. His motives remain unknown to me," she replied.

Of course. Leave it to Ghirahim to do the most unpredictable thing at the oddest time. Then again, he could still be around but it was impossible to tell…

"What if this is like before…?" Link spoke, barely audible, his voice trembling, "I… What do I do?" A sharp intake of breath rushed past his teeth as he raised his head, pain shooting up and down his spine. He instantly brought a hand to the side of his neck, where the jolt of pain originated. He thought little of it, he wasn't surprised at his muscles being so sore after lying on hard stone for hours... was it hours? He frowned, how long had he been here exactly? He wondered if anyone was worried about him. Probably not, he'd only told Karane where he was going and she was probably freaking out right about now.

His hand came back tinged red with the remnants of dried blood – his own, of course – and he made a face, suddenly recalling a certain freak's tongue on his neck. He fought the urge to retch again.

"You said that you felt his presence before, can you feel it now?" Fi suddenly piped up from the sword again.

Link's eyebrows were drawn together in thought. He still didn't get how he'd been able to sense him. Maybe it was the fact that, dare he say it, he'd grown used to the demon's presence… He shuddered. Though, weird as it sounded, it didn't feel like he was nearby.

"… No, I don't think so."

"Then my recommendation would be to leave as soon as possible, there is no point in dwelling here."

She had a point, it was probably better to get moving now and ask questions later rather than waste more time than he already had. His mind went back to the vision of the Imprisoned he'd had prior to blacking out, wondering if that had something to do with the bad feeling settling into his stomach. He really hoped it wasn't what he thought it was…

Link forced himself to move and resumed collecting his belongings, trying to ignore the uneasiness creeping up on him.

"I think you're right."

…

The sun was just beginning to sink beneath the horizon, bathing everything in long shadows and brilliant shades of orange. The air was cool and calm, the silence broken only by the soft rushing sound of the wind.

Skyloft drew closer, the island stark against the sky. It looked almost gloomy, but considering all that had happened recently, that was to be expected. Link silently urged his Loftwing to speed up with a gentle squeeze on the great bird's sides. His descent was a little rough, pain shooting up his legs as his feet hit the ground – he hadn't put any sort of finesse into the landing. Exhaustion ran rampant through his being, the day had been both physically and mentally taxing and honestly, he felt as if he could crash right there in the dirt.

But he did it and he obtained the final song piece from the Thunder Dragon and learned the complete song, though he'd had to move twice as fast to make up for lost time. Not much else could be done for now, considering he was quiet literally half asleep and rest was desperately needed before he could move on with his journey.

Practically dragging himself up the path, he began trudging his way towards the academy – why the academy? It was probably the least damaged out of all the buildings in Skyloft, it felt safe, familiar and like home, which was exactly where he wanted to be at the moment. The sun had nearly set and soon dusk gave way to nightfall. The academy was in view by now and he was just about to start up the steps towards it when movement to his right caught his attention.

"Link?"

He turned to see Karane at the top of another short flight of stairs that led up to where the bazaar used to stand. The girl looked questioning, worried, and alarmed at the same time. Link inwardly braced himself as she hopped down the steps to him.

"Goddesses, where have you been?" she immediately fired.

"I got… sidetracked," he answered, looking sheepish and not meeting her concerned gaze, "It took a lot longer than I expected."

"I was so worried. Seriously, don't disappear like that!" She jabbed a finger in the middle of his chest, making him wince slightly and recoil from the touch. She noticed this and her expression shifted to an apologetic one, and then spoke softer, "What happened…?"

As he opened his mouth to respond, a horrifying chill ran up his spine, bringing along with it an all too familiar feeling. Instinctively he glanced around, his reply momentarily forgotten on his tongue. His heart began pounding in apprehension, but he saw nothing, which somehow didn't make him feel any better. After a few moments he realized Karane was still staring at him, expecting an answer. Apparently she had noticed nothing wrong.

"It's a long story," he said simply, feeling utterly drained and not ready to deal with anything at the moment, "Look, I'll have to explain everything later. Right now, I'm just really tired."

She looked about ready to protest, opening and closing her mouth once, but decided against it, seeing his current state.

"Alright…" she gave a slow nod, "I'm on patrol right now so if you need me, well, you know where I am."

Link nodded back and started again towards the academy, disappearing through the double doors and into the main hallway, dark and empty. In a blur he ended up at his room and pushed the door open, shutting it quietly and turning the lock. Once he was inside he removed his shield and sword sheath, placing them down and flopping onto his bed. Sleep didn't come easy; he merely lay on his side, back facing the wall with his eyes open. He didn't allow himself to close them as exhausted as he was.

An ominous presence still hung in the air, so tangible he could probably cut through it like butter. He definitely knew he wasn't imagining it but what could he do about it?

'If you want to come get me, now's your chance,' Link thought sardonically as he narrowed his eyes. He was worn out and probably wouldn't put up much of a fight if Ghirahim were to attack now. He honestly could not predict the demon no matter how hard he tried. His intentions were maddening to even attempt to understand. What did he want from him? If Ghirahim had put so much effort into stalking him to Lanayru and recapturing him, then what was the point of releasing him again?

If his adversary's objective was to confuse the hell out of him and drive him insane that way, then it was definitely working. What was the demon lord playing at?

He gave an exasperated sigh. He just didn't know. What he did know that it was completely nerve-wracking trying to sleep with the knowledge that another strike could come at any given moment. How was he supposed to fight back against an enemy that kept to the shadows and out of sight?

He could probably just ignore Ghirahim altogether and continue on with his mission but that didn't seem right either… not that he had much choice. He was pressed for time. His earlier visit to the Sealed Grounds had told him that a certain dark entity was stirring up at the bottom of the pit just outside the temple again. The Triforce had to be found quickly to destroy that thing once and for all. The old woman had estimated that he had maybe a few days, if he was lucky, until it broke free once more. The sealing spell only grew weaker with each time he drove it back into its imprisonment. So if he did manage to keep it at bay once more, it would only keep fighting to get out until the sealing spell had no effect at all.

Now, if he could only make it to the Triforce without Ghirahim interfering again…

Yawning, he allowed his tired eyelids to drift shut, a restless sleep creeping up on him and finally pulling him in.


	15. Chapter 13 Pushing On

Link groaned in frustration, putting all his weight on both hands, which were supported on the terminal that controlled the positioning of the rooms. This puzzle was going to be the death of him – that he was sure of. Only one piece of the Triforce remained and somehow he managed to get the rooms in such a position that there wasn't a clear path to it. He blew his bangs out of his face and drummed his fingers on the stone, trying to devise a clever way of lining up the squares.

It was easy enough to figure out how the temple worked. Each square on the terminal represented a different room, the ones with Triforce pieces in them were marked with the appropriate symbol. Both Nayru's and Din's pieces had already been collected, which meant Farore's was the only one left. Now, if he could only get to that specific room…

He slid the pieces around aimlessly for a while but it soon became clear that he was going to have to travel to another terminal and try to change them up from there if he wanted to reach the final Triforce piece. Currently he was in a room that mirrored an area from the Lanayru Mines. He swore, if the Sky Keep itself didn't drive him mad, the eerie silence floating around the ancient room definitely would. Discomfort prickled at the back of his neck but he ignored the unsettling feeling, instead focusing on the task set in front of him.

There wasn't much time left, he knew that much. Even though the Sky Keep was miles and miles up in the air he could sense it, deep down below, past the tree tops, at the bottom of a secluded pit, something was amiss. Darkness was crawling up past its boundaries, searching… consuming…

Link shook his head, he couldn't think about that at the moment.

Finally, the slabs of stone fell into a suitable position. He could travel two rooms down, hit the terminal from there then get where he needed to go. Satisfied, he maneuvered his hand over to the switch that would set the rooms into their new arrangement.

That was when a deep rumble coursed through the temple, making his eyes widen in surprise. Seconds later, the room gave an alarming jolt to the right. Link cried out as the ground was quite literally yanked out from under him. He lost his footing and fell backwards, smacking the back of his head against the stone tile painfully.

Several consecutive slams sounded from beyond the room's walls and then silence took over again, signalling that the temple had stopped shifting. Stars swam behind the young hero's eyelids as he tried to recover. He merely lay on the floor in utter disorientation for several long moments, face angled to one side, mind in a state of 'what the hell just happened?'

Slowly, he forced his eyes to open.

Something… something was up ahead. A white figure was what it looked like. A person.

Panic immediately shot through him. He blinked rapidly to chase away the blurriness of his vision. Planting his hands on the floor beside him, he pushed himself up, and then regretted it as the sensation of someone pounding their fist against his skull from the inside assaulted his senses. He squeezed his eyes shut and bit his lip to stifle the whimper that threatened to come out, rubbing the back of his head. Had he really hit it that hard?

It wasn't until a few moments later that he registered Fi trying to contact him. She materialized from the sword to float a few feet away.

"Master, are you alright?"

"Yeah…" he muttered, wincing as his fingers brushed a particularly bruised spot. He hoped he wasn't bleeding.

Link looked back to where he'd seen the… something, narrowing his eyes to a scathing glare. Of course nothing was there now. How very like Ghirahim to screw with him like that. Was it even Ghirahim? He hadn't gotten a clear look, but then again, who else could it be?

"My sensors indicate that unknown interference has altered the temple," the sword spirit informed. She turned her body towards the device that controlled the rooms, "I recommend confirming the changes made."

"No offense, Fi, but I don't think the interference is so unknown…" Link muttered as he got off the ground and went to examine the terminal. He blinked a few times when he saw the new layout of the different chambers, taken aback and suspicious at the same time.

The rooms connected perfectly, allowing him a straightforward path to the third and final Triforce piece. Two rooms down if he left from the end opposite from where he currently stood.

He stepped back slowly, scowling and not really sure how he should feel about this. It wasn't assistance he was being given; the demon was up to something, he knew that much.

Not that anything could be done about it anyway.

He crossed the space across the middle area of the chamber quickly. Broken bits of robot parts littered the stone floor, a result of an earlier scuffle involving a timeshift stone along a conveyor belt, some targets and a switch (which Link still couldn't fathom the over-complexity of.) Heading through the doorway on the other side, he rounded the corner into another small section, and then stopped, completely frozen in his tracks.

The door up ahead slid open and shut, the resonating slam it produced travelling around the walls. He could only stare, perplexed and disbelieving all at once. Unable to think of anything else to do, he snapped out of his temporary lapse and moved to pursue the figure that had just disappeared beyond the door.

It couldn't have been who he thought it was… there was no way. It was a trick, it had to be a trick. An illusion. A trap.

And yet, he followed Zelda anyways.

* * *

><p>Link would've been happy to never see a flaming arrow again.<p>

He dodged left and right but they seemed to come from all angles. The bokoblins fired relentlessly and it appeared that if he took out one, another took its place. Like their forces were infinite, which was also insanely annoying. He drew back an arrow from his own bow and let it fly, knocking down one of the ugly red demons from its perch above. Its body fell and hit a pile of bones below, resulting in a series of sickening crunches.

And then, as he watched, those bones proceeded to lift themselves off the ground and form into the structure of a stalfos. Two swords held in its hands, it jumped into the fray as well. Link huffed in exasperation. Well, this was fun.

He threw himself behind some rocks as three arrows came in his direction and bounced off the stone harmlessly.

Farore's room had to be the hardest out of them all; there was no question about that. By this point, he didn't even know where the golden haired girl he'd been following went and he had no time to worry about it.

He took a moment to catch his breath, loading another arrow to return fire. He stepped out from his shelter to aim, only to jump back in surprise as the reanimated skeleton took a swipe at him with its cleaver-like sword. Swapping the bow and arrow for his own sword, he lunged at it in between the blades it had held up parallel to each other, horizontally cutting across. He attacked it relentlessly, if he got the mass of bones out of the way he could deal with the rest of the enemies in the room easily.

Sudden pain cut deep into his left shoulder, causing him to cry out. He staggered to the side, turning to see that the skeleton's twin had somehow snuck up behind him, blood dripping off of its blade.

He backed away from the two of them, and with about half a dozen arrows trained on him, he was in a rather sticky situation.

Thinking quickly, he tossed a bomb down at the stalfos' feet, smirking as they merely stared down at it in confusion.

The smoke resulting from the KA-BOOM created some temporary cover so he took the opportunity to gain some ground, finding a good vantage point while the bokoblins were confused. He drew back an arrow, which was insanely painful considering his wounded shoulder, aiming at the first one he could see.

One down.

Two.

Three.

A shriek somewhere above caught his attention. He looked up to see a bokoblin pointing furiously at him and he narrowed his eyes at it.

Four.

Two left and the smoke was clearing, the skeletons pulling themselves back together before searching for him again.

He spotted another one. It was in the process of raising a signal horn to its fat lips, at least, until an arrow buried in its brain. That should keep them from constantly appearing.

Five.

Now where was…

His eyes widened, he had to bite back a scream as his already injured shoulder burst into a new level of pain. He jerked forward, hand flying to the afflicted area and touching a long, slender object. Through some haze, he realized that the arrow had gone completely through his shoulder, mind going blank for a few seconds before kicking back into action, running on a sudden burst of adrenaline as the skeletons neared. With the hand opposite his useless arm, he reached for a bomb and repeated the same tactic as before.

KA-BOOM. Skeleton parts everywhere.

He dragged himself over to some cover and dropped to his knees. He could deal with the final archer after he'd healed sufficiently.

His entire shoulder was in agony, yet he could only stare at the grotesque site if impalement blankly, not fazed at all. Blood soaked his tunic, the huge crimson stain spreading fast. The arrow was still hot though the fire had gone out, he had to remove it quickly because his rush of adrenaline was starting to wear off.

Unable to think of another way that wasn't completely haphazardly, he reached up with his right hand to grip a back portion of the arrow, gritting his teeth. He snapped the end off with one motion with a slight flinch, then, with shaking fingers, gripped the front and pulled.

Dropping his forehead to the floor, he screamed, vision going white around the edges for a few seconds as he sat, hunched over in agony.

The potion… the potion…

He felt his fingers dig around in his adventure pouch, withdrawing a vial. It took all of his self-control to pull himself up and bring the bottle to his lips and not just pathetically writhe on the ground. The hero sat against the rock, panting. As soon as the potion was down, the pain ebbed almost instantly until it didn't even feel as though there had been a wound in the first place. He sighed before tentatively peaking around his cover and glaring at the bokoblin.

Six.

That was way more trouble than he thought it would've been.

Lowering the bow, he wordlessly made his way across the expanse of the room to where the door opposite the one he'd entered through unlocked. He proceeded through it, entering another area similar to the previous one, but much more open.

It wasn't until he saw what lay ahead that his breath caught in his throat.

She stood with her back to him merely a short distance away. Slowly, she turned, blue eyes finding his, a small smile gracing her lips. Something inside him clenched.

Some part of Link knew it wasn't actually her but that didn't make the encounter any less jarring. Zelda was sleeping in a crystal, miles away from where he currently was, so who was this…?

Link was wary, but started forward anyways. One quick glance down told him that the entire floor was covered in bones, which explained the sickening crunching noises made with every step he took.

Before he could reach her, something burst through the ground a short ways up ahead – a large skeleton hand, and then another and… oh, Link could see where this was going fast. He drew his sword, ready to face the armoured stalfos warrior that had pulled itself up from the earth. Initiating the battle, he ran forward and slashed at its ribs, avoiding the swords it held up in an attempt at blocking. When it stabbed back, he back flipped to avoid it. The stalfos weren't really all that difficult to defeat, just tedious.

He took the time to note that several bokoblins had risen up from the earth as well – dead ones, flesh hanging off their bones, mouths agape, solid yellow eyes fixed on nothing in particular. He also took the time to notice 'Zelda' casually walking by them as if they didn't exist. One made a grab for her but only managed to brush its fingers against the long sleeve of her white dress.

That threw him off for a few moments, and a few moments was all it took for the enemy that he'd temporarily forgotten to ram the dull end of its cleaver-like sword into the middle of his chest. The floor came in painful contact with his back as the breath was knocked out of him, the ceiling spinning dizzily. And then the same cleaver came into view and his eyes widened. It would've cut him in half had he not moved in time as a few of the bones below were the victim instead.

As he staggered to his feet, several pairs of hands made a grab for him. A few zombie-bokoblins had apparently found him a more interesting target than not-Zelda, whom he could see was already surrounded by the undead demons over by the door opposite the one he'd entered, and was doing nothing about it. Just standing there, waiting.

Link didn't know why he did it, but he broke away from the stalfos and his share of bokoblins and rushed to her defense. With one swipe of the Master Sword, he knocked all three of the decaying bokos away and then fell lifeless to the ground. From previous experience he knew that they weren't really dead until…

He drove his sword into the one of their chests, then leapt back to repeat the action on another, making quick work of them. Once he'd dealt with the majority of them, he faced the armoured stalfos once more, slicing, stabbing and dodging its vicious blows. Unrelenting, he battled it back away from the golden-haired girl, back to the center of the room, offhandedly slashing bokoblins aside and out of the way. It was tricky, but not any more difficult than what he was used to.

Finally, the creature appeared to be on its last legs as it staggered backwards, half collapsing to its knees. It raised one of its swords high above its head, its bright, malevolent eyes trained on the hero. Link merely backed out of its range of attack to avoid it, not worried at all.

It was then that Fi urgently spoke into his mind, "Master Link, I advise you move immediately."

Not a moment too soon he realized the stalfos' intention and threw himself to the side right as the massive blade left its bony hand. He rolled to his knees as soon as he hit the ground. The skeleton collapsed in a heap, too drained to hold itself up anymore, then was consumed by a burst of purple smoke.

Well then, he supposed that was that.

Link rose to his feet, taking a brief glance around the area. A few bokoblins were still wandering around aimlessly, not really doing anything. He really couldn't be bothered with them, so he decided it was about time to proceed.

Something made him stop. A sudden thought hit him, the realization dawning on him slowly. When the stalfos had thrown its sword he'd been standing in front of…

Eyes widening in alarm, he whirled around.

And something inside him fell.

Her eyes were fixed on him in some sort of shock. He didn't know what to think, she wasn't real, it wasn't like he could help her in any way. His lip caught between his upper and lower teeth.

She wasn't real…

The ground hit her knees first, than her side as she fell. Blood spread across her gown in a dark crimson stain and dripped from the site of impalement, spilling on the bones littering the ground. The sword had gone clean through her. It was all too surreal seeing 'Zelda' like this; he was torn between complete shock and horrified fascination, somehow unable to avert his eyes despite himself.

If she was merely an illusion, then how did the sword manage to pierce her?

What was she?

The hero didn't even want to know anymore, he suddenly wanted to leave, and quickly. Anywhere was better than here at the moment. Numbly, he forced his foot to move towards the door, intending on stepping around her. His eyes were still locked on her, as if bound by some curse that wouldn't let him look away.

He broke free of it when he reached the door, ripping his gaze from the girl bleeding out on the floor and placing his hands on the cool stone. After this was the final Triforce piece. After this, everything was over. He repeatedly told himself that, anything to take his mind off of what lay behind him.

A whisper, so soft and barely audible anyone could've mistaken it for merely a gentle breeze.

But Link heard it loud and clear, and for some reason, it struck him just as much as the image of Zelda's broken body had.

"I used you."

It hung in the air dauntingly, a perfect imitation of his best friend's voice, yet completely off at the same time. The urge to turn around became strong but he resisted it, he didn't let it get to him. He didn't want to let it get to him.

Forcing his limbs to respond, he pressed his weight onto the door and it gave, sliding open for him. Once it shut again he leaned his back on it, letting out a slow exhale and sinking to the floor. The a little ways ahead, the ground was marked with the symbol of Farore which the Triforce could be reached through. But he couldn't bring himself to move, it wasn't just the exhaustion of running and battling his way about the temple that was affecting him, but something else. His throat tightened and his chest constricted oddly, but painfully.

And it was about then that the tears started.

He drew his legs in towards himself and wrapped his arms around them, dropping his forehead against his knees and quietly sobbing.

He didn't even know why he was crying exactly, unable to place what had set him off. Was it from the sight of Zelda being run through with a sword? Was it from the constant threat of being followed by some enemy hell-bent on making his life miserable? Was it from everything that had happened up until this point in his journey or was it more complicated than that? All of the above?

He didn't like it either, crying made him feel weak and vulnerable, yet he couldn't stop himself.

So instead he didn't, he just let it out. There was no point in trying to fight against something he had no control over.

A faint light signalled Fi's exit from her vessel. She didn't say anything, only floating by and waiting patiently, her presence alone bringing Link some comfort.

Several long moments passed before the young hero pulled himself back together, reaching up to wipe away the saline running down his cheeks with his hand and drawing in shaky breaths. Fi looked at him with an air of sympathy before drifting back slightly to hover near the glowing mark of Farore.

"Master, our journey has nearly come to a close," she said gently. Link stepped over to where she was as she continued speaking, "Once you thrust your sword into the mark here, you will be able to collect the final Triforce piece and complete Hylia's wish for the destruction of Demise."

That irked Link for some reason but he brushed it off and moved to do what he'd been tasked, stepping up to the mark and raising the Master Sword with both hands. In one sharp motion he stabbed downwards into the stone, the sensation of being broken away from his physical body engulfing his senses.

And then he was standing in a familiar area, much like the Silent Realms. He could hear his breathing echoing around the cold world, and his footsteps as he began walking forward.

The Triforce of courage shone brightly, greatly contrasting against the blue-ish hue that dominated the rest of the plain. He reached for it, fingertips brushing against the golden surface. Its power spread down his fingers, into his right hand where it was absorbed into the glowing mark, complete.

That was it then, he had the full Triforce.

A great tremor rocked the temple, making him stagger slightly as the surrounding torches flickered out. He cast his gaze around frantically in alarm. Had something gone wrong? The shaking only grew more violent for a few more seconds before stopping altogether and leaving him in slight confusion.

Then, the blue hue of the realm was completely overtaken by an almost blindingly gold one. His eyes widened in wonder before the feeling of returning to the waking world encased him again and the world went white.

* * *

><p>When his surroundings rebuilt themselves and ground took form beneath his feet, he slowly opened his eyes.<p>

The hero found himself standing atop of the Statue of the Goddess, looking up towards the great monument of the Goddess' face. Plain as day he notced that something was off, his eyes narrowing slightly in suspicion. If it wasn't the fact that he was already set on edge by what had happened recently, then it was definitely the feeling of intense foreboding hanging in the air like smoke.

No, wait…

Link's eyes widened in sudden realization.

That literally was smoke.

He whirled around, mouth falling agape at the sudden intake of scenery before him. An almost overwhelming rush of déjà vu overcame the young hero, which was odd because he was pretty sure he'd never seen Skyloft in complete chaos before. At least, not physically.

He didn't know what to think, completely falling into a blank state of shock as he watched black smoke billow into the sky, almost obscuring the town. Though he didn't need to see it to know what was going on down below. The bright orange glow of flames was just visible through the thick cover of smog. Shadows darted amidst the confusion, some recognizable as human, others… not.

He almost couldn't believe that this was what Skyloft had been reduced to in merely the time it had taken him to complete the temple.

Almost.

Then, as if it had always been there, a strong arm tightened around midsection, trapping both of his against his sides.

The reaction was instantaneous. Link snapped out of his state of astonishment and cried out in surprise, twisting in an attempt to free himself. He was drawn in and pressed against something firm, which only made him struggle harder but to no avail. No! He couldn't believe he'd been taken off guard like that!

The only person his captor could be rested their chin on his shoulder, chuckling softly as he squirmed. Clenching his fists, kicking, throwing himself this way and that – nothing worked, the demon's grip would not yield.

"Enjoying the view?" A jeering voice hissed in his ear.

In response, Link threw his head to the side and managed to land a satisfying (albeit somewhat painful) blow on his enemy, feeling him jerk back slightly with a snarl.

The hero bared his teeth, speaking in a low and hostile tone, "Go fuck yourself."

He suddenly found a hand around his neck, squeezing tightly and making him choke out a painful gasp. Instinctively, he tried to bring his hands up to pry the hand away but forgot they were pinned at his sides, and Ghirahim's grip didn't let up one bit. The pressure the demon's fingers were applying increased dramatically and nearly caused him to gag. He felt his air excruciatingly being cut off and his thrashing gradually began to weaken as he didn't have the strength to keep it up. The lips pressed against his ear curved up into a pleased smile as he was slowly driven from consciousness.

The demon lord's eyes were downwards after a while. They only stood a few feet from the ledge of the small area of space located near the top of the Goddess Statue and had a clear view of the destruction raging on.

"Hm… I apologize for the mess," the demon muttered, his words obviously lacking sincerity, "I suppose you could say I got a little… restless."

Link was hardly paying attention to him, unable to focus as his mind clouded over with dark fog. His struggling had stopped completely and he merely slumped back against the demon lord's shoulder, his eyes half lidded. If Ghirahim had noticed than he certainly didn't let it on, he even squeezed harder for emphasis, which made Link emit a silent cry of pain.

"Oh, but to be fair, this probably would've been one of the first places to go after my Master's revival, so in a way I'm merely saving time."

The hero didn't know how long he was held in that position, but Ghirahim's voice was starting to sound really far away despite his proximity. He had to do something… The Triforce lay in his possession, if he could direct all his concentration to wishing for Demise's destruction, then he had a chance of pulling through. But would the Gods even hear him in his fading state?

"I suppose I should thank you, you have proved to be much more useful than I had imagined…" The voice sounded like it was coming from underwater, he knew he was on the verge of fainting right then and there. All his mind could process was that he needed to breathe… he needed to breathe…

"And more entertaining," Ghirahim purred, lightly licking at the corner of the hero's jaw as he relinquished his hold on his neck.

Link's eyes flew open as he sharply inhaled at the sudden allowance of air. The hero then promptly dissolved into fits of coughing and panting, his throat feeling like an anvil had just been dropped on it.

As his body sought to restore him to his senses, a gloved hand came up to gently grip his jaw.

Ghirahim made a contemplative humming sound, tracing Link's parted lips with the tip of his index finger as he continued. The hero visibly shuddered, needless to say, very disturbed.

"So powerless… just like the Goddess if she can't even defend the weak creatures she tried so desperately to preserve," the demon lord murmured in an almost pitying tone. He moved back a bit, not speaking so close to his prisoner's ear, which brought Link some relief.

"Her plan was easy enough to figure out. Send her little slave to find the Triforce and use it to destroy my Master – yes, nothing could possibly go wrong with that," he drew out the word 'possibly' as he rolled his eyes towards the town. "Looks like her plan wasn't quite as foolproof as she so believed… it had its flaws, or, flaw I should say."

If Link had looked, he would have seen the demon throw him a pointed glance, but he wasn't even paying attention to Ghirahim at the moment. No, instead he had blocked him out and was now focusing on something else. Something concerning the power he currently held possession of.

Luckily, the demon didn't seem to notice.

"It still astounds me that you serve her even after she thrust practically her whole burden on you…" he released the Skyloftian's jaw, instead opting to finger a blond strand of hair, bringing his mouth close to Link's temple.

"Don't tell me you don't feel even the slightest bit of resentment towards her?" He frowned, putting on a fake show of sympathy, "Not even a teensy tiny little bit?"

Link ignored him, letting his eyes close once more. Frankly, he didn't care what Ghirahim had to say about the Goddess. Even if he wasn't too fond of her himself as of late, that wasn't something he would tell his enemy. Instead, he directed all his concentration into contacting the Gods, he had to make them hear him… hear his wish, Hylia's wish…

"Come now, hero…" a whisper tickled his ear and he almost flinched, but managed to get a handle on his nerves. He could do this…

"She used you."

That made Link stop for a moment. He opened his eyes and stared down at his burning hometown with a vacant expression. Yes, that's all he was, a tool to be used to fix everyone else's problems.

'I know.'

But like hell he was going to let the demon's little mind games stop him now. He was so close to what he had worked so hard for and he wasn't going to throw that away.

How the Triforce worked he didn't quite understand, but he had to be doing something right because he felt it: a sudden shift in the atmosphere. His brow furrowed slightly. Power, stemming from his right hand, flowing through his being. He relaxed, allowing himself to slump forward as if defeated, as if Ghirahim's words had gotten to him. Maybe the other would buy that.

The young hero allowed his eyes to slide shut again, deeply enthralled by the insane amount of energy flowing through his veins. He knew he had their attention; all he had to do now… was wish…

Like glass being shattered by a brutal impact, an alarming charge of agony shot through him and utterly destroyed his concentration. He screamed and writhed in the demon lord's grip, the intense spell of pain being shot into him somehow familiar…

When he cast his gaze down, he found that the white gloved hand holding him captive was encased in purple energy. That explained it.

He dropped his head and gasped in anguish as the demon behind him laughed.

"Oh, no, no, no. Don't even try it. You honestly thought I didn't know what you were doing?"

The hero's eyes widened. Well, this wasn't good at all. He gritted his teeth, trying to recompose himself after the unexpected shock, anger flooding through him.

Ghirahim smirked, "Power like this is too much for you to handle, hmm?"

The demon lord's free hand reached down to grasp Link's right wrist in a bruising grip. The three-triangled mark on the back of the hero's hand was still burning brightly, its glow seeming to pulsate slightly.

"Allow me to… take it off your hands."


	16. Chapter 14 And So We Fight

Link's eyes widened in shock, he managed to raise his head slightly, that shock shifting to apprehension. He hadn't just heard right, had he?

It was him that held the Triforce, how exactly would Ghirahim… take it from him? His eyes then narrowed. He wasn't really interested in finding out.

A massive wave of fatigue assailed the young hero, prompting him to groan and drop his head. He hated the demon's magic advantage. He really did. Small tingles of pain danced up and down his spine as his strength rapidly drained from him. Wait, what…? Why did he feel so…

"Worn out, hero?" Ghirahim purred in his ear, softly nuzzling the side of his face with his own and lowering his eyelids. "All those trials took quite the toll on you it seems."

Link managed to growl in response, really wishing he could turn around and knock his adversary's teeth in. He reminded himself that he had to stay focused. Everything depended on him, but he felt so weak and tired, like he could fall asleep on the spot.

But there was something else…

He felt very, very odd and very uncomfortable, and not just because his worst enemy was currently pressed up against him from behind in some weird embrace. Something was reaching into him, a strange sort of spell coming over him. A grimace crossed his features, it was an unpleasant sensation. He meekly began struggling, but his limbs felt frozen, paralyzed. It was barely a fight on his part.

Why couldn't he move?

The answer became clear soon enough. In some way he couldn't explain, it felt as though something were being extracted from him. The grip on his wrist tightened and he cringed, but couldn't find the energy to struggle. This couldn't be happening… it just couldn't. Not at the most crucial moment in his journey.

"No… ugh…" he breathed, shutting his eyes and trying to concentrate despite the feeling of something being ripped away from him.

Zelda… he thought of Zelda still trapped in the crystal. He could see the Imprisoned gradually drawing closer to her location, eager to consume her. That's what was going to happen if he didn't do something. If he didn't end this now, it was all over and that thought alone gave him strength. He didn't come so far just to fail at the end.

"No!" Link threw his head back sharply, completely catching the demon lord off guard. Though it hurt, the collision between the back of his skull and Ghirahim's face was actually pretty satisfying, the grunt of pain and surprise that came with it more so.

He tore himself from his enemy's grasp and spun to face him, hands already reaching for his sword and shield. But Ghirahim was faster, snapping a sword into existence and rushing forward with a snarl of rage. On instinct, Link jumped back from the immediate danger… without really looking where he was jumping.

One foot scraped along the stone as he tipped backwards, the other met nothing.

The only thing he managed to catch before breaking into a sickening plummet was the look of dark amusement on the demon's face…

* * *

><p>Dark tendrils coiled and curled up from the depths of the pit, choking the surrounding air with a malevolent aura. The ground seemed to tremble slightly, the rocking motions becoming more and more prominent with every passing minute.<p>

With one hand resting on the switch of his prized device, Groose peered down into the pit. Apprehension was written all over the redhead's face.

"What's gonna happen if Link doesn't show up?"

Normally he would be more than eager to drive the ugly mass of scales back into its cage but without Link present, he didn't know how long he could keep it from reaching the temple. Link was the one who was capable of resealing the beast, Groose was just the backup and firepower.

"I'm afraid we may find ourselves in a rather precarious position," the old woman responded grimly. She stood in front of the temple, the doors having already been sealed with intricate glowing symbols.

"We cannot afford to have doubt now. Link is nearly at the end of his journey, we have to trust that he'll come through."

Groose absentmindedly nodded. The sense of impending doom was strong… and not only because of the threat of the Imprisoned breaking loose at any given moment.

"Something just… doesn't feel right, y'know?"

The old woman slowly lifted her gaze to the sky with a grave expression.

'Indeed, it does not.'

* * *

><p>A grunt escaped the hero's mouth as his feet hit the ground, pain shooting up his legs. He lost his balance and fell on his butt, the sail cloth drifting to the ground at his side. At least he had managed to slow down his fall enough to avoid serious damage. That he was thankful for.<p>

He jumped to his feet, quickly stowing away the sail cloth and whirling around, sword and shield at the ready.

Apparently no breaks were going to be allowed because as soon as he turned, he was met with several daggers flying straight at him. His reaction was a little slow, fatigue still plaguing his system, but despite that he managed to knock away all of them with a clean swipe if his sword. In doing so, he caught sight of the back of his hand. The shock that spread through him nearly prevented him from blocking the next set of daggers.

"You…" his eyes fell on Ghirahim, who was calmly approaching him from a short distance away. He could only gape in confusion, looking for some explanation as to why the symbol on the back of his hand was no longer filled in completely. "How did…?"

Ghirahim gave him a cocky smirk, "Surprised?"

Link was a little more than surprised. He truly did not expect it to be that easy for the demon to take one of the Triforce pieces. If he hadn't broken free when he did…

Link grimaced. Well, this made things a bit more complicated. He had to get the Triforce of Power back in order to fulfill the wish, and he had to do it fast. Somewhere far below, he felt the Imprisoned stirring in its confines. There was no telling how long it would be before it broke free again but Link was guessing he didn't have much time.

Instead of looking angry or taken aback, he forced a calm expression over his face, knowing those emotions would only feed the demon lord's ego.

"Well, yeah," the hero said, deepening his stance as Ghirahim drew closer, "I didn't think someone as foul as you could materialize something as pure as the Triforce."

The Master sword flashed blue for a moment, Fi speaking from the sword to him, "Master, I don't believe it would be wise to bait him at the moment."

But Ghirahim's smile just widened, "Thank you for the compliment, sky child." He snapped his fingers and another sword took form in his hands.

Link narrowed his eyes, allowing a small smirk to cross his own lips. "Don't mention it, demon filth."

Ghirahim sighed, still grinning as he nonchalantly strode towards the hero. "You're far too flattering for your own good."

Without warning, he shot forward. Link had already dodged to the side and jumped off of the stone walkway. He rolled once he hit the grass and was back up, whirling to face the demon who... wasn't there. Without skipping a beat, he pivoted on his heel , eyes scanning behind him, and he was still met with nothing.

"You make this too easy," a voice hissed in his ear.

He slashed behind him, his sword meeting thin air. A growl of frustration passed his lips as he cast his gaze around, frantically searching for the demon. Something brushed his arm and he jumped away from whatever was touching him, hearing a sinister chuckle echo around the area at his reaction. Aside from the sounds of battle in the distance, all had gone quiet. The young hero merely stood, body tense, heart pounding against his ribs.

Ghirahim messing with him was nothing new; he'd been doing it non-stop for the past week, however, it didn't make him feel any less helpless. He could only wait for the demon lord to show himself, and then strike.

A pocket of calm had overcome the immediate area. Nothing moved, nothing made a sound. The air was growing hazy, Link was guessing that winds were pushing the smoke in the Statue of the Goddess' direction, which was just fine and dandy.

He loosened his stance, not relaxing one bit, just becoming more nimble on his feet. A slow exhale left his parted lips as his blue eyes flickered left and right. A plan. What he needed was a plan.

Movement above. He threw himself to the side as steel buried deep into the grass where he'd just been standing. Determination flashed in the Skyloftian's expression at seeing the sudden advantage he had over his opponent, who was busy pulling his onyx sword out of the dirt.

If it were the second time he had fought Ghirahim, taking the sudden opportunity to attack him would've probably worked. Link rushed him without a second thought, the surprise hit when the demon dropped low to the ground and swept his legs out from under him. Before he could hit the ground, a powerful kick was landed on his side and he was sent rolling away. Ghirahim smirked, finally removing the sword and sauntering over to the hero.

Link pushed himself to his feet, coughing and feeling at the area where it felt like his ribs had cracked from the blow. Unfortunately, he didn't get too much time to regroup.

He raised his sword to intercept the demon's, staggering back under the impact. Another two swings came down, and then another two, the resulting clangs echoing around the courtyard. Link was reluctantly forced into the defensive, redirecting blow after blow until he finally found space to counter.

He stabbed forwards, aiming for the demon lord's midsection, but his opponent suddenly twisted around and knocked his blade askew. Faster than Link could comprehend, Ghirahim was behind him, raking the dark sword up his backside and drawing a cry from the teen. He turned to take a slash at him, but his wrist was seized and brought to his side. Link gasped as he was jerked forwards and nearly collided with Ghirahim's chest, but managed to stop himself. A hand ran up his spine where the long wound was located, and he winced. The hand came to a stop at his hair where it seized a fistful of his blond tresses and harshly yanked his head back.

Link glowered up at his adversary as he was forced to meet his gaze, highly pissed off. Ghirahim, on the other hand, looked very entertained.

"You're like an open book, sky child, so easily read it's almost laughable."

Link tensed when he felt the demon's mouth at his ear, squirming a little at the unwanted closeness.

"I know what gets under your skin," Ghirahim spoke softly, almost affectionately as his lips brushed against the exposed skin of the hero's neck, "and I know what makes you hurt."

The grip on Link's hair tightened to the point that it felt like the strands were being ripped out of their roots. He suppressed a shudder, air hissing between his teeth as he sharply inhaled.

"You sweet talker you," he ground out, rolling his eyes. Raising his free hand, shield still on his forearm, he pushed at the demon holding him captive. "Get off me."

He swung his arm up unexpectedly, attempting to land a vicious shield-bash but Ghirahim had already moved away, laughing.

"Well, I'd say it's about time to get serious. Wouldn't you agree?" He snapped his fingers and another sword appeared in his hands.

Link narrowed his eyes at him, wondering why he was purposefully drawing out the battle. Then again, Ghirahim wasn't exactly as pressed for time as he was and it wasn't like the demon lord to pass up an opportunity to screw with the hero anyways.

Link was just about tired of this routine.

Until he could reclaim the Triforce, he was stuck in a deadlock. There was no other option than fight.

"Sounds good to me."

* * *

><p>A bead of sweat trickled down the side of Groose's brow as he watched the scene unfold. Far below, the mass of darkness expanded, almost completely covering the bottom of the pit. As Groose watched in horror, a shape began to take form, arranging into a mouth, and then that mouth formed teeth…<p>

An earth-shattering roar caused the air to quiver and the birds to take flight. The redhead gripped the handle of the Groosenator, getting ready to aim at the monster as it began dragging itself towards the slope that lead up to the temple. He predicted that things were about to get chaotic very soon.

Looking up, only one thought ran through his head.

'C'mon, Link, where are you?'

* * *

><p>The hero gritted his teeth with each strike that came down on his defense. He was forced back, staggering slightly.<p>

'I can't land a hit…'

There was no room to attack; if he attacked, he was dead.

"Master, I have something to report." Fi suddenly spoke from the Master Sword. "I have a confirmed a sixty two percent rise in Ghirahim's strength. Unfortunately, I believe the chances of you gaining the upper hand by fighting with conventional methods have dropped dramatically."

Link blew his bangs out of his face with a huff.

'Triforce of Power equals rise in strength… makes sense, makes sense.'

He seethed as his back hit the nearby stone wall, ducking under another deadly sword strike courtesy of the demon lord. He backpedaled furiously and Ghirahim pursued, not allowing him even a moment's rest.

"Agh!" A powerful blow glanced off his shield, which he had raised at the last second, and he nearly lost his balance. His arms ached terribly from trying to hold his ground for the duration of their fight. What exactly was Ghirahim trying to prove? This was going nowhere!

It was a complete waste of time. Link knew he couldn't win against him at this rate, what point was there in even trying?

"Gah!" He stumbled back from another brutal hit, one knee hitting the ground. He refused to bow and got back up quickly, his breath coming in ragged pants.

"Having trouble, hero?" Ghirahim mocked, casually drawing his tongue across the steel of one of his blades and catching a few drops of the sky child's blood.

"No shit." Link said, lowering his eyelids.

As much as he hated it, if he couldn't best Ghirahim in strength, then maybe it was time to try a different tactic. What that tactic specifically was, he didn't quite know…

He had the Triforce of Wisdom, so he was sure he could think of something.

The demon lord lunged forwards once more and the hero raised his sword to ward off the oncoming attack.

A sudden ear-piercing roar reverberated through his mind, causing everything to melt away for a moment. The realization hit him like a bucket of ice-cold water. He knew what that roar meant and he knew what creature it belonged to.

'No…'

As the world came back into focus, a sharp pain seared across his forehead as he felt something warm and wet trickle down into his eye. He cried out more from the initial shock than the sting itself, confused and disoriented from the sudden vision.

'Well, that was convenient timing.' Slapping a hand over the wound instinctively, he stumbled back, trying to wipe away the blood so he could see again in his afflicted eye. What should he do now? There was no sense in fighting if he couldn't win and he supposed he only had a few minutes before that thing reached Zelda. Groose could only hold it off for so long…

Link grimaced. If he was fast, he could probably make it to the Sealed Grounds and hopefully lose Ghirahim in the process. It was a stretch but it was really the only option at this point. Raising his shield to block another blow, he backed up before making a full out break for the edge of the island, which wasn't too far away.

A barrier sprang to life before him and he had to skid to a halt to keep himself from crashing into it. He whirled around to see Ghirahim looking at him with something close to disappointment, the demon lord leisurely strolling towards him.

"Really, Link…?"

The Skyloftian gritted his teeth. With his home burning, the possibility of his best friend's soul being consumed increasing with each passing second, and the threat of the demon in front of him, he couldn't exactly find the time to formulate a plan. He could hardly keep up, let alone concentrate. As much as he hated to admit it, it was getting to him.

He forced himself to take a deep breath in hopes that it would calm his nerves.

"Tsk… running from a battle like that… What a cowardly move."

Link glared at the demon, reaching up to swipe more blood away from his eye. "I don't think you're in any position to criticize me. Hiding in the shadows, attacking innocent people… you must feel very proud of yourself."

He shot forward unexpectedly. Ghirahim easily blocked his first slash but Link ducked around him and left a long cut on his side before the demon could twist away.

"So that was it, you didn't recapture me because you knew I was after the Triforce. You were waiting until I retrieved it so you could steal it for yourself." Link stated, then shook his head slightly, "And somehow I'm the coward."

The battle had paused for a moment. Ghirahim merely shrugged.

"Well, I suppose I wasn't particularly discreet with my plan," he admitted, "but it wasn't like you could do much to stop me anyway, considering your position. I could tell you were in a hurry to find the sacred relic."

Link felt his wrist seized and his eyes widened as he was jerked forwards roughly. In a whirl of motion, a knee slammed up into his gut, forcing a choked gasp from his lungs. He hunched over from the sharp pain, only to be knocked to the ground by a solid punch to the face.

"Is the Goddess growing impatient?" Ghirahim jeered. Link coughed, moaning softly at the ache in his jaw and in his midsection, feeling incredibly dazed. Before he could react, the Master Sword was kicked out of his grip and then sudden weight bore down on his shoulder. As soon as he regained his senses, he tried to push himself up onto his forearms but Ghirahim easily forced him down. He grunted as his cheek was pressed into the dirt. Something sharp ran down his backside, not with enough pressure to cause any sort of damage but enough to remind him of the constant threat looming over him.

"Let me tell you something, sky child. Let's say you did manage complete her–" Ghirahim's eyes flickered up to the statue briefly, "–wish…"

Link tensed when he felt the blade lifted off of him, gripping the grass tightly and bracing himself for what was to come.

"You wouldn't get rid of me so easily."

The hero had to bite back a sharp cry as a deep slash was made across his back. His tunic became warm as blood quickly welled up and soaked through the green material.

"Ghh…" he gritted his teeth and clenched his eyes shut, but the pain wasn't enough to keep him from making another remark. "Is that so?"

Another slash came down, parallel to the first. But Link wasn't exactly paying attention to what direction it was facing at the moment as that wasn't really on the list of top priorities.

'Damn it…' he cursed inwardly. Everything was going horribly, horribly wrong. What did he do now?

"You're mine to play with, hero, and I'm not done with you yet."

Another slash. Link couldn't stop himself from crying out this time. As much as he tried to, he couldn't pull himself out from under the demon; Ghirahim was too strong. Much to his chagrin, his eyes began to burn, frustrated tears springing forth.

"Do you really think you can stop me?" the demon lord continued to mock, raising his bloodied blade to his lips and flicking out his tongue. He was certain he would never tire of the sky child's taste, and now that his life fluid was laced with desperation, it tasted even sweeter. "Or, I have to wonder…" contemplativeness suddenly took root in Ghirahim's expression. He smiled, finding another angle to work into, "Do you cling to the belief that you'll be able to quietly settle with the spirit maiden once all of this is over?"

"What does that have to do with anything?" Link snapped back, his voice slightly strained. Perhaps he had sounded too defensive.

The first three gashes were joined by a forth, the hero writhing on the ground in agony. The cut was dramatically deeper than the previous; he knew this because he tasted blood in his mouth.

"Your friend… the one you've endured so much for… how do you know she won't cast you aside when she has no more use for you?"

Link narrowed his eyes. He knew what Ghirahim was trying to do, and he wouldn't fall for it. He wouldn't turn against his best friend, but still…

Those words shouldn't have bothered him as much as they did.

Unbeknownst to him, Ghirahim was muttering something low and undetectable to his ears as he traced the four-cornered symbol he had just made on the hero's back. Link seethed as the sword touched his most recent wounds, sharp twinges of pain shooting through him. For a moment he felt an uncomfortable cross between a burning sensation and a tingling sensation run through him, but it was gone in an instant.

"Think about this. Her position is of the utmost importance now; she's the Goddess." Ghirahim went on, "… Will she have any time for her chosen hero after she's done playing with her toy?"

'Zelda wouldn't…' Link narrowed his eyes. The demon was just trying to get the edge over him, to throw him off, and he wouldn't play into it.

"You don't know what you're talking about at all," he said, hoping that he sounded more sure than he felt. Why did he even feel unsure anyway?

Ghirahim clicked his tongue, lifting the onyx blade much to Link's relief.

"Hm. If I didn't, you wouldn't have hesitated just now," the demon lord said smoothly, watching in satisfaction as Link went rigid, bristling with either anger or… something else. "Say what you want but you can't deny it. You doubt her, and it's your doubt that will be your downfall."

'I don't…' the image of Zelda instantly came to mind, her turning her back on him and sealing herself away in a crystal. He felt something clench, but forced down his emotions before they could surface. Now was seriously not the time for letting Ghirahim get to him, if there was even a time for that in the first place.

With his head turned to the side against the ground, Link's gaze fell on the back of his right hand where the Triforce mark was glowing oddly. It felt as though it were… pulsating somehow, the light it was giving off was almost too bright to look at for too long and he had to blink a few times.

Too bright to look at…

Before he could ponder on why it was acting so strange, he felt his upper arm seized and he was roughly turned on his back, weight sitting atop him. He groaned, the deep wounds on his back uncomfortably being rubbed into the ground, sending pain throughout his system. Immediately he tried to push the demon off of him, but with his arms pinned to his sides, that was just about impossible. He was trapped.

"Wh-what…?" He looked up at Ghirahim in confusion, the demon maliciously smiling back in return.

"I'm in no hurry…" He snapped his fingers, watching in satisfaction as the boy involuntarily flinched at the sound. "I don't believe proper punishment was administered last time seeing as you didn't reveal the Gate of Time's location, but…" he drew out the last word as a small narrow dagger appeared in his hand, "now that it's no longer at stake, well, there's nothing stopping me now, is there?"

'Stopping from what…?' Link thought, and then went rigid as he suddenly found himself in a horrifyingly familiar situation, the tip of the dagger hovering over his left eye.

His mouth fell open.

"Oh."

* * *

><p>Groose slammed down on the lever of the Groosenator, sending another bomb at the great mass of scales and stunning it for a moment. The most nerve-wracking part was that it roughly only had about one flight of the spiralling slope left to go before it reached the temple.<p>

Not good. Not good at all.

Groose cursed inwardly, seeing it starting to recover already. He broke away from the contraption briefly to fetch another bomb. He reached the plant in no time despite his exhausted state. The beast had to be held off and he didn't care if he had to run back and forth, hauling heavy items along the way to do it.

Still… things were looking bleak. He didn't know how much longer he could keep it up.

Groose let the bomb fall into the machine, reaching up to wipe sweat off his brow. The thing had begun its ascent again, trudging closer and closer…

The lever was slammed down again.

* * *

><p>'No, no, no…'<p>

Link broke from his stunned state and shut his eyes tight, twisting away from the sharp point of the dagger, trying to get as far away as he possibly could.

Ghirahim chuckled softly at the futile effort. "That won't do you much good," he practically sang, lightly trailing the steel down the hero's exposed neck.

Link shuddered in response, trying to shimmy out from under the demon but to no avail. "Why don't you just kill me?" he said, wincing as a sharp cut was made near his collar bone.

Ghirahim tilted his head, looking genuinely ponderous for a moment, "Not as fun I suppose…"

With a startlingly quick movement, his free hand shot out to force the hero's head back, not hesitating to pry his eyelids apart with his fingers. Link flinched when he felt something cold touch his eye, panic immediately racing through him, yet at the same time, he couldn't entirely wrap his head around the situation. He could only stare, frozen in shock.

Some part of him new he had to get out of this, but his limbs wouldn't move. He couldn't get his body to respond at all.

It wasn't until an alarming – albeit small – amount of pain flashed through his skull that he broke from his paralyzed state. It was simple; he fought, but with his arms pinned down there was little room to do so.

The foreign object dug in deeper, metal sliding in between the skin of his eye socket and–

He cried out, feeling something warm trickle down his temple and collect in his hair. Grunting, he incessantly thrashed his head from side to side, which turned out to do a lot more harm than help.

"Ah ah, don't squirm too much now. Wouldn't want to…" Ghirahim advised with mock sincerity, "…carve too deep."

The only thing Link's mind could process was that he was going to lose his eye and there was nothing he could do about it. Disregarding Ghirahim's words, he did everything in his power to break free: struggling wildly, arching his spine, bucking his hips, anything to get the demon off. Of course, considering his much smaller frame, he was held down easily.

"Stop!" He finally resorted to yelling. At this point, the pain was indescribable, his eyes beginning to water from the ever-growing intensity of it, which just made it all the more uncomfortable. "STOP!"

No, no. He had to focus, he had to do something. Anything at this point would be much welcomed, but he couldn't concentrate. He could barely think at all with panic overriding his senses.

Ghirahim smiled.

Then, a raw, agonized scream ripped from the hero, booming off the stone walls of the courtyard.

Needless to say, having an important sight organ gouged out was pretty painful.

His breath came in short, ragged gasps, his fingers clutching at the grass below. Something. He had to do something…

The following events were blurred. Numbly, he could feel something being extracted from him again. In his daze he was in no position to resist, and so… he didn't.

Blinding light engulfed the area and a startled cry leapt into the air… but it didn't belong to him. His good eye had already been clenched shut so the glow was only visible through his eyelids.

The weight lifted off of his chest only slightly, but it was enough. He didn't think, only acted on instinct, managing to free both hands and shove the demon off with a surprising burst of strength. He pressed his palms against the ground and pushed himself up, breathing heavily, pain still ricocheting throughout his skull. He didn't dare open his left eye but he could feel fresh blood seeping out from in between his eyelids and running down his cheek. Was the eye still even… attached to him? He raised a trembling hand upward, fingers hovering over the severely damaged area, and a shiver of revulsion ran through him. He was almost afraid to find out.

His gaze fell on Ghirahim, who was half crouched-half standing some feet away, one hand rubbing at his eyes furiously.

He couldn't see.

Link's gaped in shock, still not quite processing what had just happened. How did…? Did the Triforce just…?

He shook his head sharply. That didn't matter right now; he had to act quickly while he had the advantage.

With a quick swipe of the arm, he reached down and snatched up the Master Sword, trying his best to ignore the sharp jolts of agony running rampant through his system.

The hilt flashed, "Master, I would advise that you–"

"I know."

Without a second thought, he charged towards the demon lord, who was only just starting to recover.

It all happened within the expanse of a few seconds, but that time seemed like an eternity.

Ghirahim opened his eyes just in time to watch himself be run through with the blessed steel, the impact knocking them both to the ground. Link drove his knee into the other's midsection, one hand gripping the handle of his blade, the other resting on the pommel. Unfortunately, the demon had raised his hand at the last moment, making the hero's attack miss its intended target and glance off to the right side of his chest. Although, judging by the alarming amount of darkened blood beginning to stain and soak through the demon's white attire, that could prove to be a vital hit as well.

Link was just as taken aback as Ghirahim was, surprised by his own actions. A few long moments of tension-filled silence stretched between them before the sudden reversal of the situation sunk in. For once, the demon was rendered speechless, white lips parted in shock.

The anger came next. With a pain-filled snarl and an unexpectedly sharp movement, Ghirahim swung his fist up and, surprising himself once more, Link caught it near effortlessly. Using his position as leverage, he forced the demon's hand to the floor, shifting so that he could pin down his arms better. When Ghirahim struggled, he sharply twisted the Master Sword, hearing his adversary, who had for so long had the advantage over him, cry out in pain.

Unlike the sadist, while somewhat satisfying considering their history, he didn't take any pleasure from causing his enemy distress. There were bigger problems at hand.

"Enough." Link ground out in a warning tone, glaring down at the incredibly peeved demon.

He'd wasted enough time already; he had to act before–

A thunderous roar rose up from beneath the clouds, startling him. The hero shut everything else out for the time being, pouring every ounce of concentration into extracting the stolen Triforce. He could end this, there was still time.

The mark on the back of his hand steadily began to glow...

* * *

><p>Karane's head snapped in the direction of the Goddess Statue, hearing a bloodcurdling scream echo through the air.<p>

'That sounded like…' her eyes widened in realization and alarm.

Another bokoblin came at her, but she kicked it aside and sent another one backwards with a quick slash.

There was no mistaking it, that scream belonged to Link; the sky knight knew that for a fact. Some time earlier he had ventured into the structure that had appeared underneath the statue's island, insisting that she didn't follow, and soon after that, all hell broke loose.

She gritted her teeth, disbelieving that this was happening again. Skyloft was finished, there was no way the residents of the floating island could stay without being killed. The assault was much more brutal than the first, mostly due to the fact that they were already weakened and unprepared. She was only just barely managing to fight off the monsters, dodging away from them for the most part and somehow ending up near the waterfall, which was close to the Statue of the Goddess.

… What was happening up there?

Karane narrowed her eyes. As if she didn't already know. Who else would be the cause of the sudden attack on Skyloft… again?

She had to get up there and help Link!

More monsters headed her way – not just regular bokoblins too, but other, more dangerous kinds that she'd never seen before. Two reptilian creatures easily hopped the stones and crossed the small body of water separating her from the rest of the main island. Karane made an annoyed noise, turning to run for a ledge. There was no point in lingering; she was only going to get herself killed that way.

A golden light shot lit up the smoke-filled sky, bringing her attention back to the statue for a moment.

'What the…?' She thought in confusion but didn't stop running.

The edge of the island was only a few feet away when the academy suddenly felt herself jerked back, yelping in shock as she was thrown roughly to the ground. The two lizard-like beings were faster than she thought. One of them stuck out their tongue in a mocking gesture, raising its spiked tail. Karane only barely managed to move before it was brought down on the space where she would have been.

She jumped to her feet, taking a slash at the monster but it blocked with its arm that was covered in some sort of gauntlet. The monster uppercutted without warning, knocking the wind right out of her and sending her to the grass. Karane struggled to stand, not noticing the second lizard sneak behind her.

Agony exploded on her side, a few sickening crunches were audible as the creature batted her aside with its tail. She landed on the ground with a harsh thud, pressing a hand to the afflicted area. It suddenly got very hard to breathe. She coughed, a metallic taste filling her mouth.

The spikes on the reptile's mace-like tail were dripping red liquid. The thing drew closer with a toothy grin. Karane tried to get up again, but every movement she made felt like a separate stab; the pain was unbearable and the most she managed to do was get into somewhat of a crouch.

'That can't be good…' the academy student thought dryly, feeling warmth seep onto her fingertips.

Just then, a powerful roar shook the air, making the two lizards stop in their advance for a mere moment and look around in confusion.

Karane took the chance to bolt for the edge again while the two were distracted – or, at least, tried to. The two creatures weren't as dumb as the bokoblins and were on her fast. She raised her sword in some feeble attempt to block the oncoming spiked tail. The next thing she knew, she was on the ground once again, fading in and out of consciousness.

Noise. There was noise. It sounded like… a deep rumbling sound? Her eyes were cast to the right, a blurry image of what looked like the Goddess Statue fading in and out of focus… though it looked like it was sinking somehow…

That was the last thing she saw before she blacked out.

* * *

><p>When everything came back into focus, the treetops were visible above and the sky seemed… further away somehow. But wait, this area was familiar…<p>

… The Sealed Grounds?

The demon sat up slowly, pride and something else more than a little sore.

… What just happened?

"Ghh…" He… hurt. He actually hurt. It felt like his energy had been sapped as well. A grimace crossed his features as he pressed a hand to his most recent wound, pulling it back and seeing it was already soaked with black blood. Anger filled him, bubbling to the surface. No words could describe how much he hated that blade.

Movement to his left caught his attention, he turned his head to see the sky child getting to his feet a short distance away.

Link staggered slightly as he rose, thrown off balance by the descent. Now that his adrenaline rush was wearing off, he could feel the pain of his injuries much more clearly. The island, now joined with the Surface, gave a shudder and caused him to fall to his knees. Another bright flash illuminated the area for a moment before black particles began to rise into the air, dissipating into nothing. He watched in awe as what could only be the great entity of darkness that had haunted him and Zelda for so long, was destroyed at last.

Then, all was calm. The hero slowly looked up to see the Triforce resting atop the Goddess Statue. The golden power drifted back and seemingly faded into thin air. However, Link knew it wasn't gone, probably just lying dormant within the statue once more.

Despite how exhausted he was, a boyish grin crossed his face.

It was over. It was finally over.

He would have cheered if not for his current state, and the fact that he was still in the demon's presence.

Ghirahim, on the other hand, didn't know how to react and for a moment it appeared as though he actually looked distraught.

"Master…" he whispered.

"I suppose something good did come from your sick obsession with me after all." Link said, once again pushing himself up to stand and looking at his adversary with scorn. "If you weren't so busy torturing me, I may not have gotten the upper hand." Then he scowled. That didn't make a lot of sense… did it? The hero shook his head slightly; he really could have cared less at the moment.

Like floodgates bursting open, all of Ghirahim's fury broke loose.

"You stupid brat!" He snarled, narrowing his eyes at the hero, and then winced slightly at the stabbing pain in his chest, "Do you really think you've won?"

Link didn't back off, only returning a glare while stepping forward, Master Sword still in hand.

"All circumstances considered, yeah! You're weak, you're injured and above all, there's no 'Master' for you to revive." Granted, he was injured as well – half of his face had gone numb and his back felt like some clawed beast had used him as a scratching post – but, strangely, he found that he could ignore it, or at least shove it to the back of his mind for the time being.

"Do you not pay attention to anything I say, ever?" Ghirahim shot back, forcing himself up and out of his… less than dignifying position, keeping a hand firmly pressed over his wound. "You won't get rid of me, sky child. If anything, this is the furthest from over as it can–"

"Shut up, Ghirahim." Link snapped, cutting him off sharply. "Really, just stop talking."

Surprisingly, the demon did, his expression falling into an unreadable one. The hero's hand tightened around the Master Sword's handle, knuckles creaking.

To put it simply, Link had had enough – of everything he was put through, of Ghirahim, of the Goddess' trials. Everything. But his mission was over now and there was only one thing left to do.


	17. Chapter 15 Approaching Finality

Metal sliced into flesh, causing the white-haired recipient of the sword stroke to stagger backwards, letting out a cry of wrath. With no space left to move back to, the demon braced a hand on the hero's shoulder and flipped over his head with some amount of strain, clutching his other hand to his chest.

Link whirled, slashing at empty air; Ghirahim had already moved some distance away, now brandishing a sword of his own. A dark stream of liquid was running down his arm and off the blade. He didn't attack, instead seemingly attempting to gather his energy for the purpose of recovering.

Not that Link would give him the chance.

He lunged forward with a cry of exertion, stabbing, slicing, looking for an opening.

Ghirahim staggered again, darkness soaking through his glove. Link swung his arm forward, smashing the hilt of the Master Sword into the demon's temple. His emotions were livid, seeking an outlet, and that outlet happened to be right in front of him, attempting to steady himself after the most recent blow.

Ghirahim rose, clutching the afflicted area. A small droplet of black blood ran down the side of his face.

"I'm impressed, sky child," he said, noting the aggression put into the other's strikes. "Feels good, does it not?"

Silence was his only response. Stony, vehement silence.

Link advanced, a hardened expression worn on his face, sword raised out to the side. He wasn't going to give Ghirahim the satisfaction of answering. The blade came forth once more, catching the demon in the middle. Ghirahim dodged back, clutching his stomach, an unnervingly excited gleam in his eye.

Why wasn't he fighting back?

"Come on, hero. I know you can do better than that."

The mocking note in his voice made Link bristle, fingers tightening around the Master Sword's handle. Pain was running rampant throughout his system, his back and eye being the source of most of it, and it was truthfully slowing him down. But this…

He was sure he could finish this. After everything that happened, he had to finish this.

The full extent of Ghirahim's injuries was visible now that he was standing up straight. The white attire he wore was covered in his own blood in various places but he was smirking. But why? It was clear that he was at the disadvantage.

The demon lord took a step forward and Link unconsciously took a step back. How he managed to be intimidating in his current state was beyond the hero.

Ghirahim raised a hand up to lick the blood from his fingertips. Link made a face.

"You're holding back, sky child. Come now, I thought you hated me. Or..." he cocked his head in question, sights narrowing. "Are you purposefully drawing this out? Revenge getting the better of you, hmm?"

Shock crossed the hero's face at the accusation.

"What?" He shook his head in denial. "Only someone as sick and twisted as you would enjoy something like that!"

With that, he lunged forward. Much to his surprise, the demon lord actually dodged around him this time and he turned to face his opponent again, shaking from both anger and exhaustion.

But he noticed something else…

The black blood dripping down from the demon's wounds was looking rather… strange – like it had taken a metallic sheen to it. His gloves were dissolving into diamond fragments, leaving the blood to crawl down his arms in some dark, jagged pattern until they were completely covered. Link's eyes narrowed, intrigued and somewhat repulsed by the change.

"Oh? Is that not it? I'm surprised…" Ghirahim tossed his hair slightly, pleased that the sky child was so enthralled with his appearance for the time being. "You must be just dying to exact some form of retribution… An eye for an eye I believe the saying was?" He chuckled softly, gaze drifting to the injured side of the hero's face.

"What is wrong with you?" Link shot back and dashed at him again. He swung at the demon's midsection, only to recoil as he struck something hard, his sword bouncing off with a resounding clang. He looked at Ghirahim in bewilderment, seeing those black markings now spreading all over the other's body, some even crawling up the side of his face.

Alarm registered as the hero realized that the battle may not be in his favor anymore.

"Attack me again, sky child," Ghirahim hissed, beckoning him to do so with his stance. "I dare you."

Fi suddenly piped up, her melodic voice ringing through his mind.

"Master, I must inform you that Zelda will be waking up momentarily. Considering Ghirahim's proximity, this may not be a positive thing."

As if on cue, the area flooded with a virtuous presence which both took notice of almost instantly. The color drained from the Skyloftian's face but the demon lord, on the other hand, turned his head towards the temple, eyes flashing with sudden hunger. His gaze slowly drifted back to Link, a smug expression taking root.

"So this is where you've been hiding her…"

Link charged forward to attack, but all he was met with was empty air and diamonds. Before he could even turn to search for his adversary, hands found his shoulders, said adversary pressing up against him from behind. He flinched when he felt lips brush up against his ear and a finger trace down his spine, disturbed by how seductive the action seemed.

"Watch your back," Ghirahim whispered, his voice carrying a sly undertone that Link wasn't quite sure of. It was as though the demon knew something he didn't… which was usually the case between the two of them but it still never failed to make him anxious. Nevertheless, he brushed it off and viciously drove his elbow back, aiming for his opponent's gut. Unsurprisingly, the demon had already vanished with a giggle.

Ghirahim's voice echoed around the area, though its host was nowhere in sight.

"You may have destroyed my Master in this time, but in the past he lives yet! If you don't mind, I'll be taking the spirit maiden back through the Time Gate to help me revive the demon king."

Fear instantly came over Link's expression.

"No!" He made a dash for the temple without hesitation, hearing an annoyed noise in response to his actions.

"Stay put."

Link nearly crashed into the diamond wall that had suddenly constructed itself before him, successfully sealing him off from the temple and Zelda herself. It appeared that there was nothing he could do. It wasn't like he could stop the demon from outside. He swore he heard a triumphant laugh fade away into the background.

"Damn it!" Link pounded on the wall with his fist. Groaning in exasperation, he rolled his head back towards the sky, "You have got to be kidding me!"

* * *

><p>A millennia passed faster than she would have expected.<p>

She saw him, his face full of distress, looking on helplessly as she entered deep sleep. His hands were pressed against the crystal barrier that divided them, eyes enlarged, the hurt in them unmistakable.

Truly, she didn't want to leave him to face the remaining trials alone but it was something that had to be done. The seal on the demon king had to be kept intact and she was the only one capable of maintaining it.

Then she was gone as darkness engulfed her, plunging her into its depths. Safe and sound, she slept, blissfully drifting away from the outside world and all of the turmoil it carried with it. When she would awaken everything would hopefully be set right and it would all be over.

An eternity felt like seconds and soon a light was visible at the end of the dark tunnel. A familiar voice called to her, pulling her from unconsciousness. The voice was soothing, guiding and gentle, as one would think the Goddess' would be.

'It is time to awaken…' Hylia spoke softly, coaxing her vessel from the safety of the previous containment she'd been sealed in. There was a brief sound of shattering, interrupting the silence and then all was quiet once more.

Zelda's eyes opened.

The world was white and hazy, dreamlike almost. It was as though she was floating, not quite conscious but not asleep either, only able to take in her surroundings through a dense fog.

As she paced forward, down the short flight of stairs, a wave of fatigue swept over her. The blonde-haired girl stumbled rather ungracefully, but caught herself before falling, raising her gaze to take in her surroundings. As the fog cleared she recalled something, something that had been promised to her a thousand years beforehand.

Where was Link?

Raising a hand to her forehead, she frowned, worry for her friend clouding over her expression.

And why did she feel so…

The room swayed and she slowly sunk to her knees, eyes lowering to the floor. She was alone, there was no one else in the room but her. Empty. Everything felt… unexplainably empty, but an even greater sense of an impending threat accompanied that feeling.

Something… something was wrong…

Attempting to blink away the grogginess, she glanced up once more with bleary vision, breath stopping in its tracks.

A figure stood a short distance away, though it was hard to distinguish its features.

'Link…?'

She reached up to rub at her eyes with the heel of her palm before looking back up.

No, not even close.

Cerulean eyes widened, the Goddess incarnate feeling the horror of the moment paralyze her.

No… no, that was impossible!

The demon lord stepped forward, offering a malevolent grin in return.

"Good morning, Your Grace."

* * *

><p>The temple was quiet, calm, and still as the Sheikah paced around, trailing her hand along a pillar. Her expression was unreadable as she was lost in thought, wondering about the mission, wondering about Her Grace and wondering about the chosen hero himself.<p>

She gave a small sigh, stopping as she reached the other end of the Sealed Temple.

There really was nothing left to do except wait. It certainly wouldn't be long now, at least, she hoped not.

Impa turned, glancing at the doors that sealed Hylia within the back room of the temple before smirking and looking away.

She really couldn't be bored, could she? Impatient, maybe, but bored…

All her thoughts were cut off as a familiar sound reached her ears. A soft fluctuating noise echoed around the stone walls and there was only one thing that could mean. Her eyes were drawn to the back of the slowly rotating cog-like gate, interest sparking in them.

The Sheikah strode back towards it. What she expected to see was, well… something other than nothing when she peeked around it. No one stood there, not the Goddess, not the chosen hero. No one.

Impa frowned. How peculiar, she could have sworn that she'd just heard the Time Gate open…

As she began to walk away from the gate, the sound of chimes echoed around the walls. Immediately her eyes narrowed, but she was unable to pinpoint the source of the noise. She glanced around, looking from the tree sprout planted in the earth to the Time Gate to the walls, unease settling in.

It was safe to say that something was definitely not right as of now.

Then she heard it, the sound of metal slicing through air.

Eyes widening, the Sheikah nimbly dodged to the side as a volley of daggers stuck into the ground where she'd just been standing and snapped her gaze back over to the Time Gate. Somehow she wasn't surprised in the least at what she saw, or rather, who she saw.

The white haired demon laughed without humor, shifting slightly so that he had a better grip on the girl slung over his shoulder.

Recognizing the situation, Impa snarled in outrage, "Ghirahim!"

"Twig," the demon lord dryly acknowledged as he stepped forward.

The Sheikah glared, getting into a defensive stance at which, Ghirahim rolled his eyes.

"If you'll be so kind as to move aside, there are more… pressing matters I must attend to."

Bristling in response, Impa narrowed her eyes.

"I will not allow you to take her so easily. You're a fool if you think I'll merely stand aside!"

Ghirahim feigned a pout, though the impatience and hatred in his eyes betrayed the playful gesture.

"Pity."

* * *

><p>Five swings. Ten swings. A dozen. Double that. Triple that.<p>

It didn't make a difference. Not even a dent marred the brightly colored barrier; no mark made any indication that he'd even done any damage to it in the first place.

Link groaned, slumping forward and resting his forehead on the wall, the tip of his blade brushing the ground.

This couldn't be happening. Not when he was so close! Seriously, how could he have let Ghirahim get to her? No doubt he had already taken Zelda to the past by now. Neither Groose nor the old woman was any match for him – that much he was sure of. Impa may have been able to fare better but…

He wanted to shout in frustration at how stupid he was. He'd hesitated and subsequently let the demon recuperate enough to regain the upper hand. He hadn't done it on purpose but what difference did it make?

A shuddering exhale left him, his knees buckling and the pain flowing through him suddenly becoming a lot more noticeable. Surrender to his physical hindrances was becoming a fast threat – blood loss and fatigue being the most prominent.

Tired. He was tired and injured, in pain with barely enough strength to take another swing at the unyielding wall. He wanted to laugh at how weak he was.

What was this barrier even made of? It didn't look like it was ready to cave anytime soon. Even if he did eventually manage to make a crack in it, surely by then Zelda would already be…

Link shook his head as if attempting to block out that train of thought entirely. There was still time to save her. He just had to find a way around the troublesome diamond wall…

Hands braced against it for support, he forced himself back to his feet, the ground swaying nauseatingly. Several ideas ran through his head as he observed the main obstacle currently in his way. Maybe there was some way to get around it…?

An explosion of some sort rocked the temple, shaking the air and causing the birds to take flight once more.

Link jerked back, alarmed. He cast his gaze upwards as if he could somehow see over the temple and discover the cause of the sudden disturbance.

'What was that?'

It sounded like it had come from within the stone walls, prompting Link to anxiously wonder what had just happened and why. Naturally, his instincts tended towards fearing the worst possible result.

Stepping back a few feet, the hero raised the Master Sword skyward, not needing to look to confirm divine light travelling down the steel.

That was it. This barrier had to go.

With a cry of exertion, Link leapt forward, bringing the blade down with more strength than he thought he possessed at the moment.

"Come ON!"

* * *

><p>Feet pounded against the floor of the temple, the Sheikah soon utilizing her momentum to flip into the air, silver needles clasped in between each finger, before sending her weapons down at the demon below. Ghirahim dodged back as the senbon stuck into the stone.<p>

She was fast – that much was clear to the demon lord – and unfortunately for him, defensive magic wasn't her only specialty. The fight would have been going much smoother otherwise.

As Impa twisted around to land facing him, he came forward with haste, rapier drawn and ready to strike. She turned her body slightly, revealing a small sphere of swirling energy – condensed magic at its finest. Its size did little to speak for the amount of power he sensed behind it. He could already tell that if he got hit with it, he would not walk away unscathed.

Her arm shot forward, palm turned outward, and the ball was hurled at him with astounding speed. Slowing his run, his feet planted firmly on the ground for a mere instant before he pushed off, twisting his body at the last possible moment to avoid her attack. He could feel the surrounding air sizzle as the sphere shot by and connect solidly with the wall behind him.

The result was a little more than destructive.

A thunderous boom sounded as the magic hit the stone, exploding on contact. The demon lord grunted as he was sent sprawling forwards by the force of the blast, turning to steady himself quickly in an attempt to save himself from a rather ungraceful impact with the ground. The wall crumbled without resistance, a few supporting pillars collapsing as well, revealing the stairwell and forestry behind it. Dust and debris rained everywhere, scattering throughout the inside of the temple.

Both sides of the fight watched in alarm as several decent-sized chunks of rocks landed close to the unconscious blonde girl's head, all miraculously missing her.

Ghirahim snapped his head back to glare at Impa, "Very nice work, twig. You almost hit the spirit maiden."

"You shouldn't have moved," the Sheikah shot back scathingly.

Irritated, impatient and quite frankly, wanting to get this over with, the demon charged, swiftly avoiding the various bits of temple strewn around the floor. Impa threw up her hands, casting a shield of blue magic in front of her to clash with the oncoming sword strike. Ghirahim growled and pulled back, dodging around her to try and find an opening. But she followed his movements and adjusted the barrier accordingly, much to the other's frustration.

"The hero, where is he?" Impa said. She grimaced as a particularly sharp strike against the barrier caused her feet to slide back along the ground a few inches.

"Whatever do you mean? Are you suggesting I did something?" Ghirahim paused in his assault to drawl, a hint of sarcasm and feigned innocence in his words. "Well you're right, of course but the accusations still hurt."

He vanished unexpectedly. Impa's eyes widened as she sensed movement behind her. By the time she turned, it was too late. The hasty attempt at another barrier shattered in her hands as dark metal made contact with it, the force of the attack sending her flying backwards through the air.

Needless to say, the pile of rubble she crashed into was not very forgiving. The Sheikah lay motionless, face down on the floor.

Livid with fury, though doing his best to repress it, Ghirahim stepped forward, sabre still clenched in one hand. Drawing in a breath to steady his nerves, he called out, "The hero won't oh-so-inconveniently jump to your rescue this time, wretch. I believe you're out of luck."

Gripping the handle of his blade tighter, he leapt forward, ready to bring it down on the inert Sheikah and put an end to her.

What he expected was for the metal to sink into her flesh, for her lifeblood to collect in a pool on the floor beneath her, and it would be over just like that.

What he did not expect was for her to suddenly turn over, palm ablaze with magic, and thrust her arm upward, slamming the sphere of energy right in the center of his chest. The collision between a pillar some distance behind him and his back followed, the sharp, resonating pain causing him to cry out. The column of stone buckled slightly as he smashed into it, a few pieces of rock falling to the ground with him as he collapsed.

Panting, Impa forced herself to stand, one hand pressed to her side as she hatefully glared at the demon lord.

Ghirahim growled low in his throat, steadily pushing himself up as well but keeping his gaze on the floor. He was literally shaking with anger. That hit not only bruised him literally, but damaged his pride as well. He snapped his head up, cracked markings, onyx in color, now branching across his face though partially obscured by his hair.

Impa felt a smirk tug at her lips. Seeing the utterly enraged expression on his face was priceless.

He brought his hand up to swipe a droplet of blood away from the corner of his mouth.

"I've really had enough of you, impudent dog!"

The Sheikah didn't wait for an invitation. Several senbon left her hand, aimed straight for the demon, but he swiped them away with his arm, the needles bouncing off the metallic skin. Anger had somewhat taken the place of weakness, Ghirahim rushing forward without hesitation, calling a sword back to existence. Blade seeking flesh, he stabbed at his opponent, meeting air instead of flesh as she dodged around him. This only infuriated him more.

About to unleash another attack of her own, Impa was once again overcome with surprise as he disappeared in a cloud of diamonds. She turned, expecting him to attack from behind as he had done before. Unfortunately, that was her mistake.

A pained shout filled the temple as the blade stabbed down from above, sinking in just beside her shoulder. Impa staggered back, clutching the afflicted area as Ghirahim flipped over and planted his feet on the ground. Excitement burning in his eyes, he dashed forward, ready to add to the amount of blood on his sword. The metal slashed deep into her midsection and the Sheikah fell to her knees. She coughed, crimson droplets spraying the ground before collapsing completely.

That was it. This was as good as over.

Advancing, he prepared a finished strike.

… And halted, sensing movement behind him, his ears picking up a sharp intake of breath. He turned his head, catching the spirit maiden's horrified gaze from the corner of his eye.

Fear was evident in Zelda's expression as she took in the sight of her guardian crumpled on the floor, blood collecting under the Sheikah's form. The color in her face drained away when she noticed Ghirahim leering at her, momentarily freezing like a small animal would in the face of its predator.

"So she awakens," he murmured.

* * *

><p>With one final swing, the diamond wall came down, cracks branching out and spreading across its surface before it could no longer sustain itself and shattered into tiny fragments.<p>

Link nearly collapsed where he stood, but he had no time to waste and instead pushed himself towards the temple doors. His hand met the stone and pressed forward, sliding the stone open. Immediately, the thick smell of dust hit his nostrils and he raised his arm up to his face, burying his nose in the crook of his elbow.

"Groose?" Link called into the large expanse of the room. The right wall had collapsed and rubble was strewn everywhere – it was like a sea of debris. He couldn't see the two usual inhabitants of the temple anywhere.

"… Link?"

The hero looked over to see some nearby rocks shifting, a familiar voice drifting out from behind them. A few moments later, Groose climbed out from his previous entrapment and coughed, trying to wave away the dust. Link was surprised that he looked relatively unscathed (aside from a few cuts and bruises) for having been in… whatever just took place.

"What happened?"

"I don't know! The wall just suddenly… well, yeah…" Groose rubbed at his eyes, "But before that, this… this really weird lookin' guy came in and he…"

"Took Zelda," Link finished.

"And went through the Time Gate!" The redhead looked at him with a questioning expression, "Wait, how did you…"

"I'm a little more familiar with him than I'd like to be," Link remarked dryly.

Groose's expression dropped as he took in the state of his peer, noticing the blood on his face and the blood staining his tunic a dark red.

"Link, you…" he swallowed nervously, "you don't look so good."

The pain had never faded, though it had grown monotonous – so much that he had found it easy to block it out, which surprised him. But now that Groose had just reminded him of its existence, he found it a lot more noticeable. He grimaced, suddenly feeling like he was about to drop on the spot.

"Wait a second…" Groose reached down to dig around in his pocket before withdrawing something, "I was saving this for an emergency."

Link's expression turned to surprise. How did he even manage to obtain something like that?

The bottle was cracked slightly, but other than that it was seemingly fine. The small, glowing sprite inside the glass seemed fine as well, albeit a little shaken up. Groose reached for the lid and popped it off, the fairy flying out of her confinement and fluttering towards Link.

"But what about–" He started to say, but the fairy had already reached him.

"Do not fret about me, I am quite alright," a voice rasped from somewhere in the room. The old woman certainly didn't sound alright, but nevertheless she insisted, "You must pursue Zelda. For her to be taken at a time like this is unthinkable!"

The fairy flitted before his face, spreading her healing magic. She focused on his eye especially, drawing closer to it. For a moment she just hovered there and Link was worried that she wouldn't be able to do anything about its current state – that he wouldn't be able to see out of that eye again. The prospect was honestly scaring him, his throat feeling drier and drier by the second. She could do something about it… right? It couldn't possibly be that bad.

A sort of warmth spread throughout the site of the wound, the pain lifting and sweet relief taking its place.

He raised his hand up, fingertips brushing against his closed eyelid and feeling a round firmness underneath. He noticed now that the pain was completely absent and opened his eye slowly, vision blurry at first.

But he could see.

The fairy circled around him, sealing wounds up as it went.

"Agh…" he grunted, feeling a sudden, intense pain flash through his system, spreading from between his shoulder blades. His mouth dropped open and he hunched forward, gasping. It was gone the next instant, leaving him in a greatly confused state. The little ball of light came back into view, her eyes scanning over him as if assessing his physical state.

Pushing thoughts of… whatever had just happened aside, Link couldn't help but breathe a great sigh of relief now that the physical pain was completely lifted.

He gave the fairy a small, appreciative smile. Seeing that he was fine, the sprite bounced happily in midair before zooming off.

"Master, I detect you will have a sixty seven percent higher chance of reaching Zelda if you leave right at this moment," Fi advised. He nodded, making his way over to the bridge between the present and past.

Gathering his resolve, the hero stood before the Time Gate, gazing up at the spinning mass as the pathway appeared. Without a moment's hesitation, he took off into the darkness, leaving the world behind him.

'I'll bring her back. All of this wasn't for nothing.'


	18. Chapter 16 Final Battle

**Fucking cheese on a poptart.**

**Ahahaha another funny story. No, really, you'll find this hilarious.**

**The chapter got... cut off again lol soooo this isn't the final chapter before the epilogue. Hilarious right? **

**No? Welp.**

**Well anyways, I deleted all of my other author's notes so that the word count is more accurate, also because I'm really annoying.**

**Hopefully this is better than the last chapter because that one sucked ass. I think it's better at least...**

**Creative chapter titles, hell yeah.**

* * *

><p>Link stepped out of the Time Gate into a younger version of the very same temple he'd been standing in earlier. The scent of dust was still heavy in the air, making him cough and narrow his eyes in suspicion. He circled around the Gate, eyes widening at what he beheld.<p>

It was like déjà vu. Rubble was carelessly strewn around the temple, all seemingly having exploded from the wall, or lack of wall.

'Of course. What happened in the past altered the state of the temple in the future,' Link thought, pacing forward. 'But what exactly did happen?'

His eyes landed on a motionless figure lying in between the scattered chunks of stone.

The hero dashed forward, stepping over bits and pieces of temple to get to the crumpled form of Impa. He knelt next to the Sheikah's side, gently rolling her onto her back, his eyes widening at the amount of blood spilling from her wounds.

"Link…" she muttered in a strained voice, struggling to sit up. "Zelda… Ghirahim took her. I tried to fight him but he…" she trailed off, air hissing in between her teeth. The Sheikah turned her head in a sharp gesture towards the far exit of the temple. "He went through there. You must go after him!"

"But you…."

Impa narrowed her eyes, speaking in an affirmative voice.

"I'm fine. Just go."

Link rose to his feet, nodding solemnly. He turned, sparing one last glance over his shoulder at the injured Sheikah before quickly making his way over to the double doors at the end of the temple.

* * *

><p>Ghirahim carefully set the golden-haired girl down on the ground before raising his hand to snap, the clicking sound of his fingers echoing through the desolate air of the realm. Dozens of diamond spikes appeared in mid-air, stabbing down around the edges of the slope right as the doors to the temple burst open.<p>

Link ran forward, cursing in frustration as a wall formed, connecting all the spikes and effectively cutting him off. The hero pressed his hands against the barrier and peered down into the pit to see the demon lord teleporting around Zelda's inert form and… dancing?

Link scowled, rolling his eyes and shaking his head.

'I'm gonna pretend I didn't see that."

He looked back to see Ghirahim stop, holding one hand over Zelda as her body started to emit a faint glow, the brightness increasing with each passing second. The demon raised his gaze, mockingly smirking up at Link before returning his attention to the girl who had begun to levitate, stopping just below his hands as a pained whimper spilled past her lips. Ghirahim's eyes flashed excitedly.

"Hear me, my hordes! The spell has commenced!" he called out as an insane amount of bokoblins began to materialize and stampede up the hill. The sky began to darken, the air of Hylia's realm crackling with summoning magic.

Link didn't wait for permission. He was off in a matter of seconds, running down the slope and hearing Ghirahim continuing to rant, much to his displeasure.

"The demon king will return! Until then, you WILL keep that whelp from interfering with my ritual. I don't care if the whole lot of you get lodged on the end of his blade. You will buy me the time I need! Do not fear him, fear my wrath if you fail me!"

'And that will be very, very soon,' Link thought, narrowing his eyes as the bokoblins came into view. He reached back and pulled his sword from his sheath, not stopping for an instant as he began to dodge in between the red monsters, only slashing at them if they came too close. It quickly became a pattern: run, slice, run, slice.

'They go down so easily…' Link cut one out of his way, the creature almost instantaneously disappearing in a puff of violet smoke, 'all I have to do is avoid them and I'll be at the bottom in no time.'

* * *

><p>Ghirahim's gaze was drawn upwards once more, the demon noticing that the shrieks of his dying minions were alarmingly close now. He growled, annoyed as he moved his hands over the spirit maiden's form once more, cursing the spell for taking so long.<p>

His eyes widened a fraction when he spotted Link.

'Impossible. How is he already more than halfway down?'

Glowering, he lifted a hand, snapping his fingers once more. His vision blurred for a moment, but he didn't dare drop his concentration. He grimaced, hating having his magic spread out all over the place like this.

'Curse him, curse him…'

* * *

><p>The young hero skidded to a stop, seeing another barrier appear up ahead along with two moblins that were blocking his way once more. He ducked a swing from one of the bokoblin cleavers, cut it across the stomach, and spared a glance behind him.<p>

He gritted his teeth at the huge amount of leftover bokoblins just catching up to him now.

He didn't have time for this!

Link looked back at the two fat, ugly creatures, glancing from them to the barrier on the edge of the slope.

'Wait…'

He smirked as an idea formed in his head. Without a second thought, he ran at one of the moblins, the thing roaring in response as it noticed him and brandishing its spear in what was probably meant to be a threatening way. Undeterred, Link dashed up its wooden shield, planting both feet firmly on the top and pushing off, flipping over the side of the barrier and freefalling to the ground far below. He reached for his sailcloth to slow his descent and as soon as his feet touched the ground, he was running again.

He was so close that he could see the look of infuriation on Ghirahim's face. The base of the pit was right up ahead, guarded by two lizafos. Before they even had the chance to know what hit them, Link had impaled one of the scaly creatures through the neck, leaving it to fall to the ground, writhing for a few moments before going still. Filled with adrenaline, he took care of the other one nearly just as quick, slashing and stabbing at it until it was in the same state as its comrade.

Breathing hard with exertion, the hero ran for the opening in the diamond wall.

* * *

><p>"You're far too quick, boy."<p>

Ghirahim glowered at him, unceasingly moving his fingers above Zelda. She twitched once, but didn't open her eyes.

Absolutely livid, Link stepped forward, slashing at the air with his blade, droplets of monster blood flying off the steel.

Furious at the simple display of defiance, Ghirahim wrung his hands, "I realize a simple child like you knows nothing of magic, but spells like these take time and a steady hand. Can't you wait quietly like a good boy?"

"No."

The demon lord glared at him contemplatively for a few moments, as though processing that blunt, simple answer. Then, in one quick motion, he threw his arm up, casting Zelda high into the air, much to Link's alarm.

"You know what? Fine!" Ghirahim called out. "If you're so intent on hurrying to your grave, I'll be more than happy to show you the way."

Zelda made a noise of pain, head tossing a bit before she fell still once more. Link gaped up at her, contemplating how he was going to get her down from there and coming to the conclusion that the demon had to be dealt with first, obviously. He glared back at Ghirahim, the demon walking towards him without hurry. Up close, it was easier to see the blackened cracks in his skin, some now running across his face and down his neck. The picture was actually rather frightening.

Link's eyes widened as a burst of diamond fragments surrounded the demon, almost entirely obscuring him as he continued to speak.

"This time there will be no heroic escape. It was foolish of me to allow you to walk away with your life before… rest assured, it will not happen again." He seethed, hunching over as the red cape dissolved from his shoulders and the air crackled with energy. Link looked down in surprise to see some weird, glowing surface form over the ground, gasping as the ground slowly started getting further and further away. He looked back to the demon, shocked to find two pupil-less white eyes leering back at him.

Ghirahim's voice dropped to a deadly growl.

"That is my promise to you, sky child."

The whirlwind of diamonds slowly dissipated, leaving behind a very different looking figure. White markings covered the demon's now shiny black skin, branching out all over his well-toned body and converging on a large, silver diamond at the center of his chest. Link stared, open mouthed, taken aback by the drastic change in appearance, more so at how familiar this new form seemed…

Ghirahim stepped forward, producing a metallic clanking sound, his fists clenching as he snarled in rage, hunching over as if it was too much to contain.

"If only I'd put you in your place from the very beginning… Show a human a little mercy and next thing you know, he thinks himself your equal!"

At that, Link snapped out of his shock and regained his composure.

"You've told me that before, I just find it pathetic that it bothers you to the point of holding a personal vendetta against me."

Ghirahim straightened up, a sardonic smirk evident on his face.

"I'll admit, human, you are of the utmost fun to torment. But unfortunately, this is where the fun has to end." He threw his head back, arms coming up to wrap around his shoulders, "You stand before a demon, or should I say, a weapon without mercy!"

The demon lord's form and for a moment, what looked like a dark, sinister looking blade that bore a striking resemblance to the hero's own took his place.

'He's…' Link thought, stunned. His grip on the Master Sword tightened, the handle flashing back reassuringly.

"For you, boy, I've prepared a most appropriate and humiliating death." Ghirahim lowered his piercing gaze back down to the teen, "First, I will take my time bludgeoning you, and when I grow bored of it, I will drive you to the edge and deliver a last strike to send you falling into oblivion." He unwrapped his arms from himself, bringing them to his sides, fingers curling and twitching in anticipation, "I'll delight in casting your body into this pit and snuffing out the flames of your life. Your broken body will serve as fine sustenance for the demon king!"

"If you really intend on killing me, then why don't you just skip the teasing and actually get to doing it?" Link retorted back angrily.

Ghirahim's eyes narrowed. With a small turn of his head, he motioned to Zelda's floating body, which was close to where the two currently stood.

"Well, I wouldn't want you to miss the main event now, would I?"

Bristling, Link lunged forward with a cry, ready to unleash all of his fury on the demon.

Ready to rescue Zelda.

The battle had begun.

Ghirahim raised his arms, blocking Link's blade as the hero proceeded to take frantic swings at him. Each strike bounced off, doing no harm to his skin, but he was pushed back across the floor every time the blade came in contact with him. Soon growing bored of this, he swung his fist at Link's face, but the hero merely dodged and continuously attacked him from a different angle, driving him back again and again…

The hero swung his arm up, sending the demon staggering to the edge, watching in satisfaction as a look of shock came across his face. He reared back, then swung forward with all of his might and successfully pushed him off.

As the demon fell, another platform materialized below his body, roughly cutting off his plummet. A cry of pain left his throat as he hit the surface and didn't move, stunned for the time being.

'Too easy…' Link thought, but took the opportunity to attack anyway. He leapt off the platform, gripping his sword with the blade pointed downwards, his target being the center of the enemy's chest.

Surprise hit when Ghirahim rolled to the side without warning, leaving him to stab down into empty space, defenseless. A powerful kick slammed into his gut, devastating pain spreading throughout his entire body like fire. Link gasped, breaking off into ragged coughs as he stumbled back and wrapped his arms around his middle. That had felt like being struck with solid metal. He'd be surprised if a few ribs hadn't broken.

Ghirahim smiled maliciously as he walked forward, exposing his fangs, "Hurts, doesn't it?"

As Link tried to steady himself, the demon approached, making him inwardly panic. He tried to back up, but Ghirahim's hand shot out and grabbed his throat, squeezing harshly and cutting off his air.

'No!'

Link gave a choked cry, struggling against and prying at the fingers strangling him, but to no avail. He couldn't let this happen now. There was no way he was going to let this happen now!

Thinking quickly, he raised his hand that held the sword, slashing the blade across Ghirahim's front. The demon cried out, grip loosening only slightly. Link did it again, with more force this time, earning a shout of pain as he cut directly across the diamond on the other's chest. He was released, taking a moment to catch his breath before rushing forward and attacking the weak spot he'd found over and over again.

Ghirahim let out a frightening cry of wrath, leaping back and away from the boy continuously attacking him, jumping off the platform and landing on another one below.

"This isn't going too well for you, Ghirahim!" Link called out from above, walking to the edge of the floating floor.

The demon lord growled and looked up at him, lip curling in frustration. He brought his hand down from where it had been clutched against his chest, seeing it covered in his own blood.

"You petulant brat…"

Link cried out in surprise as the platform disappeared from underneath his feet and he fell down to the one below. He managed to land in a crouching position and straightened up to face Ghirahim again. The first thing he noticed was that the silver diamond on his chest had cracked drastically, red showing through from underneath what appeared to be a casing. The demon glared hatefully at him, shoulders shaking as he breathed. He raised one hand and snapped, materializing a sword.

Ignoring the ache in his midsection, Link darted forward, clashing his blade against the onyx rapier, trying to get at the demon lord behind it. Ghirahim blocked each strike and dodged around the hero, forcing Link to counter an attack of his own.

Exchanging blows, the two battled around the circular arena, trying to find some footing over the other. One wrong step, one slip up, could lead to the odds severely tipping in favor of the opposition. One small mistake could cost either the match at this point… and the hero especially couldn't afford that.

Link grunted, feet sliding back along the tiled surface, his arms quickly growing tired as he steadily found himself being pushed back onto the defensive. His teeth ground together behind his lips.

"Tick, tock, tick, tock…" Ghirahim said lowly as he advanced, "We can play cat and mouse all you want. It's her time that is running out, hero..."

Huffing in frustration and impatience, Link lashed out at him, trying desperately to land a hit, or at least drive him back again. He hastily struck, again and again, pushed on by the fact that he only had mere minutes to save his best friend before the spell would be completed.

He had to act now! The demon lord had almost been driven to the edge of the platform. Just a few more swings and…

A hand clamped down on his wrist as he stabbed forward. He didn't even have time to register surprise, yelping as Ghirahim gave the limb a painful twist. Rapier still in hand, Ghirahim drove his other fist forward, slamming the handle up just under Link's ribs with an insane amount of force.

The hero's mouth fell open but no sound came out. He staggered back a few steps, hunching over and coughing, the coppery taste of blood hitting his tongue. Everything blurred for a moment as a vicious wave of nausea came over him.

Ghirahim grinned excitedly and thrust the blade forward, catching Link deep in the middle while he was stunned. The hero gasped and jerked back, pressing one hand to his stomach and feeling warmth seep onto his fingers. His eyes widened in alarm but he had no time to act as Ghirahim sliced deep into his side, the searing pain forcing a scream from his lungs.

The demon lord smirked, reveling in the sound as he raised his blade again. Link cried out as the sword slashed through his gauntlet and into his wrist, pain flashing up his arm. His own sword slipped through his fingers, falling to the floor with a clatter as something warm dribbled down onto his hand.

Finally, Ghirahim threw his hand up, catching Link under the chin and sending him reeling back to stumble around in disorientation, now facing away from the demon.

Faster than he could process, his shield was yanked off his arm and a sharp impact drove into his backside, sending him sprawling forward to the floor. He pushed himself onto his hands and knees instinctively, but collapsed again as weight slammed down on his lower back, knocking the air out of him. Hands seized his wrists, keeping them firmly pinned down as he sputtered and coughed against the ground, a few specks of red appearing on the translucent floor.

The demon lord smirked down at him maliciously. He pressed his knee into Link's lower back and forced the boy's stomach wound to grind against the platform, positively delighted at the agonized groan that answered his actions. One of his hands traveled up Link's spine, along the material that had ripped in their much earlier scuffle. He gripped the torn material and pulled it apart easily, exposing the bare skin underneath. Link's breath caught and the hero clenched his eyes shut. He tried not to make a noise and squirmed uncomfortably as he felt the coldness of metallic fingers trace along his skin.

Ghirahim hummed, musing as he examined the various scars he'd left on the sky child, some older, some rather recent…

His hand worked its way deeper under Link's tunic until his fingertips were resting against the gash on his side. A barely suppressed cry passed between Link's clenched teeth as Ghirahim curled his fingers into the wound. He writhed and tried to wriggle away, attempting to drag himself out from under his enemy but to no avail. That was simply impossible considering the demon's weight.

The demon lord smiled, digging his fingers in deeper and forcing a shout from the hero's mouth. Link went rigid, his struggles stopping entirely as Ghirahim removed his hand. The demon could see him panting harshly, obviously in a lot of physical distress. It only made him giddier.

Link moaned weakly when he felt Ghirahim grab his upper arm and turn him onto his back, the demon's knees positioning on either side of his waist. His arms lay uselessly spread outwards, the sharp pain having knocked him breathless and incapable of even thinking of using them to fight back. He barely had the strength to do so anyways.

This couldn't be happening…

The panic was slow and gradual as his mind caught up to what was happening, the sudden shift of power in the fight having been so fast he could barely comprehend it. The hero's gaze was cast upwards somewhere in the dark sky, his eyes opening and clenching shut several times as he tried to refocus, vision hazy with pain.

Ghirahim leered down at him, admiring the steadily growing patch of red on the front of his tunic and enjoying the little gasping noises he made.

Link raised his head slightly, narrowing his eyes up at the demon lord. He swung upwards with his right hand, which happened to also be his injured one. His wrist was effortlessly caught and gripped tightly, causing him to let out a yelp. Ghirahim smiled, squeezing tighter and watched as blood spurted from the injury. Eyes wide with apprehension, Link could only stare as the demon lord brought his captured hand close to his mouth, splaying his fingers for him as his long tongue snaked out to lick off some of the blood coating the appendages.

Link's mouth fell open with revulsion as he frantically tried to pull his hand away but with no luck. Ghirahim's grip was vice-like. Eyes darkening with bloodlust, the demon took one of the hero's fingers into his mouth, moaning softly at the flavor of the human's life fluid.

"St-stop!" Link stammered out, turning his head away and shutting his eyes tightly.

Ghirahim regarded him for a few moments, smirking as he pulled back, but didn't release the boy's hand.

"Your blood tastes divine, sky child," he purred, eyeing the red liquid seeping from the edges of Link's mouth. "Oh, but you already know that, don't you?"

He reached down and seized his jaw, bringing his face uncomfortably close to the other's. The demon lord's tongue darted out, tip tracing along the seam of Link's tightly closed lips. The hero attempted to jerk his head to the side with a grunt, sickened beyond belief, but Ghirahim held his head in place and forced him to sit through it until he deemed the sky child disturbed enough to retreat.

Link was shaking from a combination of pain, hatred, and fear. He resumed struggling again, trying to push up against Ghirahim's weight but with no success.

He wasn't going to lose here!

The demon lord would have none of his thrashing, however.

Ghirahim seized a handful of his hair, pulling him up and slamming him back down. Link's eyes narrowed as he tried to suppress a sound of pain, but a small cry slipped out. He went still, eyes falling shut as he tried to think of a way out of this.

His eyes snapped open when his head was roughly forced backwards, giving him an upside-down view of Zelda, who floated not too far away.

"Listen closely, hero…" Ghirahim said lowly, grip tightening on the blond hair in his hand. Link seethed, unable to do anything as he continued speaking. "You'll notice her whimpering has drastically decreased in volume. Do I have to tell you what that means?"

Link came to realize with alarm that it was indeed true. His best friend had fallen silent, not even twitching every so often like she had been doing earlier. She was completely still.

'No…'

It couldn't be too late for her. He wasn't prepared to give up just yet, not after everything.

Zelda suddenly stirred, a small gasp leaving her mouth. Link's eyes widened at the sign of life, convinced he could still save her. He attempted to fight and struggle again but a heavy fist slammed down on his stomach, causing his vision to momentarily fade as agony flashed through him. He didn't even hear himself scream, though he did hear another voice, low and mocking.

"Just sit tight and enjoy the show, sky child..."

He was jerked back to reality when hands tightly enclosed around his throat, making him gasp and choke as he was swiftly denied air. The image of Zelda blurred as moisture collected in his eyes from the pain, hands reaching up to uselessly grapple at the metallic arm.

It hit him hard – the realization that the moment he passed out, that was it, it was done. He'd fail and Ghirahim would win.

The demon lord stared down at him without emotion as his grip sharply increased, forcing a small, shrill cry from the hero. The hero's nails scraped along the steel-like skin of his arm, but were unable to find purchase – it was about as useless an attempt as trying to put a dent in iron with dirt.

The seconds wore on. His eyes rolled back in his head, hands slowly sliding away from Ghirahim's forearm and falling to the floor on either side of him. Ghirahim watched as the boy's eyelids fluttered shut, one final strangled gasp escaping him.

Finally, he went still.


	19. Chapter 17 Final Battle part 2

**This is actually part of the previous chapter but yeah.**

**Excuse any mistakes please.**

* * *

><p>Ghirahim watched Link's face for a few long moments, breathing heavily as he slowly pulled his hands back. The boy didn't move – he was as lifeless as the body floating nearby. All was silent, blissfully silent.<p>

He'd… won.

The demon let out a victorious laugh, though it was more of a breathless cackle, his head tipping back on his shoulders. He broke off in a groan of pain, coughing a bit and tasting blood in his mouth – a bitter reminder of his own less-than-perfect condition.

Sights settling on the spirit maiden above, his eyes narrowed in spite. At least the spell was almost complete – that much he was sure of.

He grinned.

It wouldn't be long now until he would be reunited with his Master, and that thought brought on a conflicting mix of fear and excitement – the demon wasn't quite sure which emotion was stronger. Either way, the moment he had worked so hard towards was approaching fast. It was only a matter of time now.

The demon lord was so absorbed in triumphant thought that he didn't notice a hand slowly, steadily sliding along the floor...

A splitting sound filled the air.

Pain followed shortly after that.

Ghirahim's eyes widened, mouth falling open before he slowly lowered his gaze.

'What…?'

Metal claws were buried into the diamond on his chest, leading to a glove, leading to an arm, and finally leading up to the hero's intense glare. Lips pulling back in a snarl, Link gritted his teeth before driving the claws in deeper and gouging the gem. A steady stream of black began to dribble down the metal, to his wrist and down his forearm.

He'd been tricked…?

The demon lord was stunned, the pain of having his core cut in to causing his senses to go blank for a moment, and that was all it took for Link to shove him back a bit and then slip out from under him. Stabbing pain shot through him, though somehow it didn't register in his adrenaline filled mind.

A hand shot out and wrapped around his wrist as he went to make a break for his blade. Instinctively, Link turned and threw his arm forward again, plunging the metal claws of the Mogma Mitt deep into the demon's fiery stone. The grip was relinquished and he was free to scoop up his sword, which lay on the other end of the platform.

Ghirahim coughed, staggering back a bit as he glanced down at the partially shattered diamond, gritting his teeth before glaring back at the blond. His tone was venomous.

"How dare you…"

Link whirled to face him, shaking his head as though unable to process the words.

"How dare I?" Link's head spun from the pain, the tone of his voice climbing in disbelief, "How dare I?!"

The hero attempted charging at the demon again, but stabbing pain through his midsection caused him to falter and cringe.

Ghirahim's eyes flashed and the next thing Link knew, he was on the floor again, certain his jaw had been shattered from the devastating punch having just been dealt to him. A groan escaped his throat as he forced himself to his feet again, coughing and feeling at his jaw to make sure it was not in fact broken, opening and closing his mouth a few times.

"Your effort is worthless in the end, hero," a hated voice spat. "Look above you. It's over."

As if Link was falling for that. He kept his glare focused on the approaching demon, struggling to his feet again.

"The spell continues even as we fight, in a matter of seconds her soul will have been completely absorbed."

Ghirahim tilted his head slightly as he saw Link raise his blade to him again, shaking it disapprovingly.

"You still think that she wouldn't cast you aside like one of her old play things once she has no more use for you. Such blind conviction…"

Link bristled, trembling with exhaustion and frustration. He was tired of this game. Tired of everything.

"Why are you doing this, Ghirahim?"

"If you don't know that by now, sky child, I think we're going to have a serious problem."

"Yeah? And how do you know you won't be cast aside by your own Master yourself?"

It was a shot in the dark, possibly his last attempt at gaining ground over his adversary, but it at least took some of the desired effect. Ghirahim's eyes flickered before narrowing, and the demon stiffened, not responding. A sore spot? Was it not too late to turn the situation around?

"Your goal was to bring your Master back, that's what you've worked so hard for, right? But then, what after that? What will become of you?" Link continued, breathing hard. His right foot steadily slid back along the platform. "Maybe it's your use that will have run out by then. You're being played just as much as I am, but at least I'm fighting for someone who actually cares for me in return!"

It honestly wasn't expected to garner such a reaction from the demon lord, but it worked nonetheless. Link didn't quite know what Ghirahim's relation to his Master was, but judging by the fury suddenly present in the demon's expression, he had a pretty good idea.

The dark spirit gave a snarl, advancing on him still. Link didn't need to spare a glance behind himself to see the platform edge nearing; he could practically sense the drop.

"So where does your fixation on me come from? Do you really hate me that much?" Link kept talking, barely aware of the words he was choosing. "You know what I think?"

"Shut up," Ghirahim snapped, hardly interested in anything the hero had to say. But Link noticed how he wasn't denying anything being said either.

"I think you needed a distraction from your mission. You couldn't kill me back then when we first encountered because you thought I was too insignificant to kill, you can't kill me now because you need someone to vent your frustrations on." Link's eyes narrowed as his vision blurred for a moment, the platform seemingly swaying. He absentmindedly wondered just how much blood he'd lost already. "That or you're trying to convince yourself that you don't need to kill a pitiful human such as myself to get what you want, so you just relentlessly torment me instead."

A sudden scream of pain rang through the air, and Link had to force himself not to take his eyes off of the demon lord to look over at Zelda as cries continued to spill from her mouth. The youth knew he was almost out of time, and he would only have one shot at this. Gripping the handle of the Master Sword tightly, he stared at Ghirahim coolly.

"The point is: you're the one that's the slave here. Not me. And if I'm right, then you know that even if the outcome of this is you winning, you'll still lose."

The demon lord scoffed, deciding he'd had enough of this stupidity, and furiously snapped his fingers, grimacing slightly as more of his power was eaten away.

"Don't speak about matters you don't understand, boy!" He shot back, a great sword materializing in his hands. And then he was running at the hero, rapidly closing the distance between them.

The hero could find the time to worry about the pain and exhaustion he felt later, pushing it all back and focusing. He feigned running to the right to avoid the incoming swing, only to duck under it and to the left, whirling around in a blur to take a swing at the back of Ghirahim's neck.

The demon staggered forward. Link's eyes flashed with determination as he took another swing, and then another. The demon growled with wrath, twisting around to try and halt the youth's vigorous attacks, only for his core gem to be struck again by the hero's blade.

With one final swing, Ghirahim was sent off of the platform, body crashing to the one below where he lay, stunned and disoriented. The blazing gem at the center of his chest was like an open target.

Link stepped up to the edge, glaring down coldly as he panted harshly. He slowly raised the Master Sword towards the blackened clouds, a beam of light travelling down the steel.

"I could say the same to you."

Glowing blade pointed downwards, the hero leapt off the platform.

* * *

><p>Ghirahim's choked scream echoed throughout the air as the sacred blade found home in the middle of his chest, momentarily blinded as intense agony flashed through him.<p>

Above him, the blond had his hands clenched tightly around the handle of the Master Sword, gritting his teeth together.

'Die… just die…'

If possible, he pressed down harder and a cough answered the action.

This had to work… He prayed that this would release Zelda from the spell trapping her. It was a slim chance but it was the only option he had left.

The demon's hands came up to weakly grasp at the blade, black liquid sputtering past his lips and running down his chest.

"Give her back…!" Link growled, twisting the steel and causing a fresh stream of blood to dribble down the red jewel, which was practically covered by now.

Ghirahim gave a choked gasp before his lips turned up in a smirk. "Too…l-late… the spell continues even as… we f-fight… Killing me will do… nothing."

A primal scream ripped itself from the hero's throat as one of his hands shot forward, cracking across the demon's jaw and forcing Ghirahim's head to snap to the side. He hardly noticed the pain that shot up his arm, adrenaline numbing everything else besides his utter determination to save his best friend. He couldn't stop until she was safe, even if he died in the process.

The demon's hands finally slipped down, falling to the ground beside himself as he went still, and Link was left in silence.

Panting heavily, the hero nearly collapsed over Ghirahim's body, using one hand as a brace against the floor and the other gripping the handle of his sword.

Had he done it or was he really too late…?

Link raised his head to look upwards at Zelda's body. She was no longer screaming, but merely hanging limp in the air. But as he watched, the glow surrounding her steadily began to fade, the magic releasing its hold… literally. Her body dropped like a stone towards the ground a dangerous distance below.

Link was already running to catch her.

A strangled cry left the hero's mouth as she practically crashed into his arms, causing brutal pain to shoot throughout his body. The impact caused the two to skid a bit, Link feeling himself fade for a moment and slumping over Zelda's inert form.

When he came back to awareness, he numbly pressed his hands to the ground and lifted himself a bit, his eyes finding his friend's delicate looking face.

"Zelda…" he murmured softly. Her peaceful expression didn't change, and she didn't stir when he shook her gently. She looked like she could have been asleep.

"No…" the distressed whisper slipped from between his lips. After a few minutes of desperate attempts to get her to awaken, she still did not stir. Gone.

"No, please no…"

This wasn't happening. She couldn't have really…

He grimaced, body curling in on himself as another sharp pain shot through his midsection. Everything suddenly hurt so much, most likely because of his adrenaline rush fading and leaving the physical distress to take over.

When Link pulled his hands back from being wrapped around his middle, his eyes widened, taking in the sight of blood coating his palms and fingers. He looked down to see that the front of his tunic was almost entirely stained red. When… when had he gotten himself injured to that extent?

A wet cough forced its way out of his lungs and he moaned, nearly doubling over. So this was what it had come to? Defeating his enemy but being too late to save his best friend?

And now, with nothing to heal himself with, he knew death wasn't too far off.

Everything he'd gone through… it was all for nothing.

The first drop of moisture landed on the spirit maiden's dress, then the second, the hero's vision growing blurry.

"I'm sorry… I'm so sorry…"

* * *

><p>There was something behind Link and he knew it. A dark presence seemed to leak into the air, crawling across the floor of the pit and brushing against his exposed back, drawing a weak shiver from him. He didn't know how long he merely sat there, but with each passing second the presence seemed to grow stronger, building and building until he has to use all his will to resist looking behind him. He already had a pretty good idea of what he would see.<p>

He shut his eyes, clinging to Zelda's lifeless body throughout it, trying to ignore the swirling mass of energy building behind him and shaking his head as if to deny the reality. An overwhelming sense of dread came over him as the wind disrupting the air calmed to a deathly silence, and the hero tentatively turned his head to look over his shoulder at the beast that lay behind him.

Time seemed to still for a moment. The figure standing over in the center of the pit was not the Imprisoned but something much smaller, and at least a dozen times more intimidating.

Link felt a coldness drift over him as the demon turned, what had to have been hair flaring to life quite literally. The plume of orange fire sat atop his head, emitting the same orange glow as the demon's hateful eyes. Although the new being was nowhere near the size of the Imprisoned, when he rose to his full height, Link instantly felt miniscule compared to his mass. The hero could only stare with a mixture of trepidation and awe as the revived demon king rose up a clawed hand to examine it. Ghirahim was nowhere in sight.

A deep, commanding voice seeped into Link's consciousness and it took him a moment to realize that the demon was speaking.

"So… this is all the Goddess has to offer me; her inert human vessel and her half-conscious hero."

Rage bubbled to the surface, through the layer of exhaustion as the hero's eyes narrowed to a glare. Despite the pain, he pushed himself to stand, determined not to look intimidated by the demon's presence, and put his body in a protective stance over Zelda's. A sinister grin was all he got in return followed by an amused chuckle.

"I'm insulted to say in the least." Demise said.

Link gritted his teeth and raised his blade. That chuckle turned into a full blown, rumbling laugh that seemed to make the air tremble.

Forgetting everything, even reason, the hero charged forward with his blade raised, uncaring of how pathetic the attempt must have seemed. He was determined to go down with a fight.

But as soon as his foot hit the ground, the sensation of his lungs turning to water hit him, making him freeze and nearly buckle. He gasped, unable to draw in air, vision swimming. Somewhere far away, the sound of the Master Sword hitting the dirt registered.

What…

Link crumpled to his knees, disbelief and shock written all over his face. A scream would have ripped itself from his lungs if it weren't for the blinding agony that had paralyzed him, overloading his nerves to the point of numbness. Not to mention he didn't have the breath anyway.

'How…?'

Demise seemed to be thinking the same thing, an amused look on his face as he watched the hero collapse for seemingly no reason, turning to another figure standing some distance away and looking for some sort of explanation. Ghirahim was grinning, elated at finally having his Master's attention. His eyes drifted to Link, a knowing look passing between him and the hero.

The demon had done something to him.

But when…?

Link struggled to focus on the silent exchange seemingly going on between the two demons, his fingers digging scourges into the dirt. His eyes fell to his flashing blade and guilt flooded him amongst the pain. He couldn't fight any longer, he could scarcely remain conscious.

'I'm sorry… I couldn't do it…'

A bright orange flash overtook the area and when Link dragged his gaze up again, he could make out that Ghirahim was gone and Demise was holding some sinister looking black blade. The demon king's mouth moved but Link couldn't make out what he was saying, it was like he was hearing from underwater.

Then the dark sword was raised and a violent gust overtook the area. The hero only had a brief glimpse at the clouded sky before his body slammed into the stone behind him, and then nothing.

* * *

><p><strong>...<strong>

**Stay tuned for the conclusion to this train wreck.**


	20. Epilogue

**... Did I really just finish this? *throws hands up in victory* PRAISE DA LAWD! First multichapter marked as complete! I honestly thought I was gonna give up on it multiple times but I didn't. I beat it. HA!**

**Apologies for typos. This was done kind of hurriedly.**

* * *

><p>Awareness was slow, dripping over him like a viscous fluid and leaking into his senses.<p>

A warm softness surrounded him and a soothing, rhythmic touch stroked across his forehead, prompting an almost barely audible groan to arise from the hero's throat. His eyelids fluttered, the youth briefly catching a bit of the dim light in the room, though it hardly registered in his barely conscious mind. He was content to drift back into the abyss again but a nearby chuckle didn't allow him such a luxury.

A shiver travelled down his spine despite the warmth. Another groan slipped out of his mouth, this time one of protest. He didn't want to wake up. From what he'd learned, waking up only meant more pain and suffering.

Not fully cognizant, he grimaced and cringed away from the touch. If it weren't for the dreadful ache in practically every inch of his body, he may have been able to pretend he was just waking up from a bad dream and the familiar surroundings of his room in the Knight Academy would greet him at any moment.

Unfortunately, fate had a different plan.

A voice was at his ear, hot breath ghosting over his the skin of his neck.

"It's time to wake up, dear sky child."

Link shivered again, eyes reluctantly opening at last. The voice spoke again, sounding pleased.

"Ah, there we are."

He let out a hoarse cry of pain as a hand roughly grasped his hair, jerking him upright off of what had to be a bed. Why was he in a bed? Where was he? What was happening?

His mouth moved to attempt voicing these questions to the demon staring maliciously back at him, his enemy now back in his regular form.

"Wh-what h-ha…?"

A round of coughing cut him off, each word like claws scourging his dry throat.

"I think you know," the demon replied.

But he didn't. For a moment, things just didn't click together and when he tried to recall the past events, he drew a blank. Nothing was there except for darkness and pain. The hero looked to him, lost, searching for answers, but the white-haired demon only offered him a cold, almost far away gaze in return. Only after a few minutes of tense silence did the answers begin to return to him, horror settling in those blue depths.

"N-no…" Link said, barely a whisper.

He… lost? He actually lost…?

"Yes…" Ghirahim confirmed, though he wasn't smiling, or showing any signs of triumph. His tone was flat and his expression was unreadable, but Link hardly noticed.

"My Master was rather generous with you," the demon lord remarked, looking over the sky child's battered body as he released his grip on his hair. Petrified with realization, Link merely slumped back down on the bed, staring at nothing.

"You should be thankful you were allowed to live."

Thankful for what? That he now had the time to reflect on his failure?

That sent a new wave of coldness through him. What had happened to Skyloft, his home? What would happen to the surface now? And what about…

His mouth fell open to once again try and voice these new questions, but his mind went blank and no sound came out. As though having read his mind, the demon lord stroked his hair in some falsely reassuring manner.

"All will be clear in due time, sky child… Be patient."

Numbly, Link turned on his side, away from him, wanting to curl up and shrivel into nothing.

"I d-don't believe you…" he murmured desperately.

The sudden anger in Ghirahim's voice made him jump slightly, then cringe further away from the demon.

"You can deny your situation all you want, it won't affect the reality," he hissed venomously in Link's ear, though there was something unidentifiable behind his tone... "And that reality is that you lost, hero, and believe me… you'll learn to accept it."

With that, he pulled away, leaving Link to shiver and cling to the blankets. The hero's eyes began to burn and he clenched them shut, trying to think of something, anything, to take his mind off his current predicament. All he was able to think of were his moments before blacking out from hitting one of the walls at the bottom of the pit… how he'd collapsed for seemingly no reason.

His eyes opened.

"You did something to me."

Ghirahim finally smirked, mirthless and dry.

"I did tell you to watch your back, didn't I?" He said, running his fingers along the four jagged scars making up a diamond on the hero's bare back. "That should have been a dead giveaway, but I suppose I give you too much credit…"

Link's vision blurred, the youth angry at himself for being so careless. He could only shake and move away from Ghirahim's touch, burying his face in the bedspread. Hopefully he would suffocate. Why had his life been spared? What was the point of this?

No, he knew the point. It was to prolong his suffering for as long as possible, simply because it brought the demon enjoyment. His teeth clenched so hard he thought they would cave under the pressure.

"I hate you." He managed to choke out. A short laugh punctuated the otherwise silent room.

"Oh, come now, I'm not entirely heartless."

'No, you're much more than that.' Link thought bitterly, thankfully feeling the other move off of the bed.

"I think you'll be pleasantly surprised at who I want you to see. Wait here…"

Link faintly heard the sound of a door shutting, and that was the moment when all his emotions burst forth so fast he couldn't even make sense of it. For what seemed like an eternity he merely lay there, sobbing into the pillow. Over. It was all over. He'd failed everyone all because of some dumb fluke. What was there left to do?

When the room had fallen silent again, he slowly pushed himself up, blankly taking in his surroundings. A few small whimpers of pain slipped past his lips as sharp twinges of pain flashed through his abused body, not used to the sudden movement after being out for… who knows how long.

The room was fairly plain, not that he was really paying much attention to detail at the moment. His gaze fell to his lap where his hands limply rested. He didn't even bother reaching up to wipe the wetness away from his face.

What did he do now…?

What could have been hours passed by, the hero merely sitting there, not really caring. Part of him wanted to pull himself together and attempt to escape from wherever he was. Part of him questioned if there was even a point in trying that again, it hadn't been very effective before.

He hung his head, defeated.

'I'm sorry…' he apologized to no one.

The door to the room opened once more, causing Link to bring his head up. An expression of shock replaced his vacant one as a figure was shoved onto the bed in front of him.

"I'll leave you two to catch up." Ghirahim's voice rang out before he disappeared once more.

Golden hair spilled across the sheets, doll-like features arranged in a peaceful expression. Her white dress contrasted greatly with the dark colours of the room, seemingly giving off its own light. The hero hesitantly crawled over, not trusting his eyes for a moment. Was it a trick? Another illusion of his best friend?

Slowly, his hand crawled over, fingers gingerly brushing against her forearm.

Zelda didn't stir. Cold. Lifeless.

"I'm sorry…" the broken whisper fell from his dry lips. There was nothing else he could say or do. She was…

His fingers clenched tight around her dainty hand and, so gently he thought he'd imagined it, her hand squeezed back.

* * *

><p><strong>And... fin.<strong>

***chuckles lowly and continues to do so until it builds into full on cackling***

**I'm evil.**

**So what's gonna happen now? Is Zelda really dead? Why did I leave so many open ends?**

***shrugs* Up to your speculation. I'm not going to be writing a sequel, well maybe I will but... Idunno. We'll see.**

**Thank you all for reading and reviewing this terrible fanfic~!**


	21. Alert

**Sooooooooo, there's a sequel. **

**That's all I had to say.**

**Yeah.**

**Have some fun.**

**/s/8821056/1/Sanguinary**


End file.
